Wait continues for former Portsmouth and Middlesbrough defender Christian Burgess' contract situation to be resolved
Christian Burgess hasn’t looked back since leaving Pompey on a free transfer in 2020.
Christian Burgess’ future is a hot topic in Belgium at present as he enters the final weeks of his Union Saint-Gilloise contract.
The former Pompey defender’s existing deal with Les Unionistes expires next month, and, as OF yet, no agreement has been reached to extend his six-year stay with the Jupiler Pro League side.
The 34-year-old has expressed a desire to stay at Union, where he is currently club captain and has enjoyed huge success since leaving Fratton Park on a free transfer in the summer of 2020.
The club also reportedly want him to stay, with Burgess considered a pillar of the dressing room and one of the best defenders in the Belgian top flight.
However, no deal has been struck to date, despite talks being held.
The current stalemate might encourage the Saudi clubs who were keeping close tabs on the centre-back’s Union situation last year to return.
But with the League Two-title winner for the Blues reportedly rejecting a lucrative offer to move to the Middle East last summer in favour of remaining in Brussels, where he has settled with his family, they still might have trouble convincing the former Middlesbrough man to up sticks.


Since moving to Union, Burgess has featured 260 for the club, established himself as legend among the fans, and is the current squad’s longest-serving player.
His career at the Joseph Marien Stadium has also been littered with silverware, with the defender helping Les Unionistes win the Jupiler Pro League in 2024-25, four years after helping the club win promotion to Belgium’s top flight with the Challenger Pro League title 2020-21.
Two Belgian Cups, including this year’s title, and a Super Cup have also been secured during his time with the club. Meanwhile, Burgess skippered the side as they played Champions League footballfor the first time this season.
Union and Burgess’ hopes of securing a second successive league title and a domestic double were scuppered late in the season, however, with Club Brugge securing the title.
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