Huge former Portsmouth favourite facing potential heartbreak for history-making Champions League bow
Christian Burgess amassed 210 appearances for Pompey between 2015 and 2020.
Christian Burgess is facing potential heartbreak on the eve of Union Saint-Gilloise’s Champions League bow this evening.
The centre-back’s USG are set to take part in the competition for the first time in their history after securing automatic qualification last term.
That success earned Sebastian Pocognoli’s men a place in the Champions League group stage phase alongside some of European football’s elite.
The road to Budapest begins tonight for the Stade Joseph Marian outfit, who face Dutch champions PSV.
But after such a long wait, Burgess could be sidelined for the highly-anticipated contest which gets underway at 5.45pm at the Philips Stadion.
The former Arsenal and Peterborough man is a huge doubt for the fixture, having missed USG’s Sunday’s 1-0 triumph over FCV Dender with a foot injury.
And having yet to return to full training, Pocognoli admitted the defender is ‘uncertain’ for the trip to PSV for the club’s history-making Champions League debut.
The head coach told HLN: ‘He's uncertain for Tuesday. We'll have to see how he reacts in the coming days. Christian is our captain and is very important to us. We'll do our best to get him ready.’
It’s been a long-time coming for Burgess and USG, who have enjoyed huge success together during the centre-back’s five years at the club.
After arriving from Fratton Park on a free transfer in 2020, Les Unionistes have risen from Belgium’s second division before claiming the Belgium Super Cup and have since established themselves as one of the Jupiler Pro League’s top sides.
After enjoying Europa League football for the past three seasons, the defender came close to the Champions League during the 2022-23 season but fell short in the qualification stages.
However, that’s all set to change, with USG preparing to make their first appearance in the competition.
The Old Lady face PSV this evening before fixtures against Newcastle United, Inter Milan, Atletico Madrid, Galatasaray, Bayern Munich, Marseille and Atalanta await.
But it remains to be seen whether Burgess will be fit to feature in the club’s history-making Champions League bow as he faces a late fitness test.
Christian Burgess’ time at Pompey
The centre-back was one of 15 new faces recruited by Pompey in 2015 in Paul Cook’s summer overhaul.
After helping the Blues to the League Two title in 2017, Burgess went on to work his way into Kenny Jackett’s backline and started the EFL Trophy final success against Sunderland at Wembley in March 2019.
He was an ever-present at Fratton Park during the 2019-20 Covid-struck campaign as Pompey fell short in the play-offs against Oxford United.
Burgess claimed The News/Sports Mail Player of the Season accolade at the end of the season before rejecting a new deal to remain on the south coast.
During his five-year stay at PO4, the huge Fratton favourite amassed 210 appearances for the Blues where he earned two trophies.