Anthony Vanden Borre

2.1. Anderlecht

Vanden Borre developed his skills at Anderlecht throughout his entire youth career, training alongside his friend and future teammate Vincent Kompany. He made his professional debut in the regular competition at the age of 16 years and 187 days, in a match against Charleroi SC in March 2004. At that time, only Paul Van Himst, an Anderlecht icon, had debuted at a younger age. A month later, Vanden Borre signed a contract with Anderlecht until 2007.

In 2005, he gained attention during a UEFA Champions League game against Chelsea, where he struck Petr Čech's post, in a match Anderlecht lost 1-0. He scored his first official goal for the club on September 21, 2005, opening the scoring in a 5-1 home victory against K.S.V. Roeselare.

Both Vanden Borre and Kompany were considered prodigious talents. Paul Van Himst praised Vanden Borre as "the biggest talent he has ever seen in his career," highlighting his technical ability, passing, and vision. However, unlike Kompany, Vanden Borre's time at Anderlecht was characterized by irregularity, a lack of concentration, and injuries. Minor incidents, such as shaving his initials "AVB" into his hair, led to him being labeled a "bad boy" by both the press and his coaches.

Despite interest from clubs like Hamburger SV, Ajax, Inter Milan, Real Betis, Tottenham Hotspur, Juventus, and Lazio, Vanden Borre chose to extend his contract with Anderlecht until 2010 during the 2005-06 season.

2.2. Italian career

Vanden Borre spent a significant period of his early professional career in Italy, playing for ACF Fiorentina and Genoa C.F.C..

2.3. English career

Vanden Borre's career included a loan spell in England with Portsmouth F.C..

2.4. Genk

After returning to Genoa from his loan spell at Portsmouth, Vanden Borre was heavily linked with a departure during the transfer window, including a potential return to Portsmouth as part of a deal involving Kevin-Prince Boateng. However, on September 1, 2010, it was announced that Vanden Borre would move to Belgian side Genk in a temporary deal for 350.00 K EUR.

Initially, the transfer faced complications due to interest from Hapoel Tel Aviv, even though Vanden Borre had already signed a six-month contract with Genk without a mutual agreement on the transfer fee. Eventually, Genoa released the player for free on January 5, 2011, coinciding with the re-opening of the transfer window and within Genoa's 2011 financial year. Vanden Borre officially signed a two-year deal with Genk, with an option for a third year, on September 8, 2010. He was not permitted to play in official matches until January 2011, though he participated in friendlies and reserve team games.

A week after officially becoming a Genk player, he made his debut for the club on January 22, 2011, coming on as a substitute for Kevin De Bruyne in the 78th minute of a 3-2 victory over Kortrijk. In the final game of the Belgian Pro League before the PlayOff I, he received two bookings in a 1-1 draw against Standard Liège. Despite this, he played a crucial role in Genk winning the national title by featuring in almost every game during the PlayOff I.

In the subsequent 2011-12 season, Vanden Borre was part of the Genk squad that participated in the UEFA Champions League campaign, reaching the group stage. He often played in the first team but faced more disciplinary issues under new manager Mario Been. On January 15, 2012, in a match against Zulte Waregem, he received a booking in the 18th minute and was substituted in the 78th minute. He was then excluded from the squad for five games before making his return. In the PlayOff I, Vanden Borre scored his first goal for Genk on April 14, 2012, in a 3-1 win over his former club, Anderlecht. At the end of the season, he was not offered a new contract and was released by the club.

After his release from Genk, he was again heavily linked with Anderlecht, but a move did not materialize. In October 2012, he reportedly joined Ukrainian side Tavriya Simferopol until the end of the season, but his time in Ukraine was short-lived, and a formal contract was not officially concluded.

2.5. Return to Belgium and others

Vanden Borre's later career saw him return to his former club Anderlecht, as well as brief stints in France and Africa.

2.5.1. Return to Anderlecht

In 2013, after five years away from the club, Vanden Borre returned to Anderlecht until the end of the season, having been given a second chance by team manager Herman Van Holsbeeck. His return was warmly welcomed by his teammates during training. After making a comeback with the reserve team on March 4, 2013, Vanden Borre made his league comeback a week later, on March 16, 2013, coming on for Ronald Vargas in a 1-1 draw against Genk. Despite playing only 12 minutes in one match that season, Anderlecht extended his contract by two years on June 18, 2013, due to the departures of Marcin Wasilewski and Denis Odoi, which left Guillaume Gillet as the only right-back.

On November 4, 2014, in a Champions League group stage match against Arsenal, he scored two goals (one a penalty) as Anderlecht staged a remarkable comeback from being 3-0 down after 60 minutes to earn a draw.

3.1. Belgium national team

Vanden Borre made his senior international debut for Belgium at the age of 16 on April 28, 2004. He came on as a substitute for Eric Deflandre in the late minutes of a 3-2 loss against Turkey. At 16 years and 186 days old, he became the second youngest player to debut for Belgium, behind only Fernand Nisot (16 years and 19 days in 1911). His first start for the national team came on June 4, 2005, in a 0-0 draw against Serbia and Montenegro.

After being absent from the national team since November 2011, Vanden Borre was recalled by manager Marc Wilmots on February 27, 2014. This was to assess his tactical adaptability as a backup to Toby Alderweireld at right-back, ahead of other contenders like Guillaume Gillet, Thomas Meunier, and Laurent Ciman. He made his return on March 6, 2014, in a match against Ivory Coast. On May 13, 2014, Vanden Borre was named in Belgium's squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.

He earned a total of 29 senior caps for Belgium, scoring one goal. His only international goal was scored on May 11, 2006, in a friendly match against Saudi Arabia in Sittard, Netherlands, contributing to Belgium's 2-1 victory.

3.2. Youth teams and Olympics

In addition to his senior appearances, Vanden Borre represented Belgium at the U-21 level, participating in the 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship. He also played for Belgium's U-23 team in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

4.1. Club

4.2. International

Scores and results list Belgium's goal tally first.