Francoise Van der Elst was one of the best European right wingers in the late seventies. With Anderlecht he reached three consecutive Cup Winners’ Cup finals. He won in 1976 (scoring two goals in the final against West Ham) and 1978 (when he was the top scorer of the tournament). With the Belgian national team he reached the final of the 1980 European Championship (losing to Germany) and played two games at the 1982 FIFA World Cup. In his career he also played for New York Cosmos, West Ham United and Lokeren.
NAME: Francois Van Der Elst
BIRTHDATE: 01/12/1954
BIRTHPLACE: Opwijk
NATIONALITY: Belgium
HEIGHT: 172 cm
POSITION: Right winger
LEAGUE STATS:
Anderlecht (243/82)
1971/72 Belgian First Division (1/0) 1st
1972/73 Belgian First Division (11/0) 6th
1973/74 Belgian First Division (27/7) 1st
1974/75 Belgian First Division (32/15) 3rd
1975/76 Belgian First Division (24/1) 2nd
1976/77 Belgian First Division (23/15) 2nd
1977/78 Belgian First Division (23/6) 2nd
1978/79 Belgian First Division (30/7) 2nd
1979/80 Belgian First Division (29/11) 5th
New York Cosmos (43/12)
1980 NASL (13/6) W
1981 NASL (30/6) RU
West Ham United (62/14)
1981/82 First Division (22/5) 9th
1982/83 First Division (40/9) 8th
Lokeren (57/12)
1983/84 Belgian First Division (31/4) 10th
1984/85 Belgian First Division (25/8) 10th
1985/86 Belgian First Division (1/0) 14th
INTERNATIONAL CUPS:
Anderlecht
1972/73 European Cup (1/0) R2
1973/74 Cup Winners’ Cup (2/0) R1
1974/75 European Cup (6/1) QF
1975/76 Cup Winners’ Cup (8/5) W
1976/77 UEFA Super Cup (2/1) W
1976/77 Cup Winners’ Cup (9/5) RU
1977/78 Cup Winners’ Cup (9/6) W
1978/79 UEFA Super Cup (2/2) W
1978/79 Cup Winners’ Cup (2/2) R2
1979/80 UEFA Cup (2/0) R1
NATIONAL TEAM:
1973/83 BELGIUM (44/14)
1980 European Championship (4/0) RU
1982 FIFA World Cup (2/0) R2
HONOURS:
Anderlecht
Belgian First Division: 1971/72, 1973/74, 1975/76 (runner-up), 1976/77 (runner-up), 1977/78 (runner-up), 1978/79 (runner-up)
Belgian Cup: 1971/72, 1972/73, 1974/75, 1975/76, 1976/77 (runner-up)
Belgian League Cup: 1973, 1974
Cup Winners’ Cup: 1975/76, 1976/77 (runner-up), 1977/78
UEFA Super Cup: 1976, 1978
Belgian Sports Merit Award: 1978
New York Cosmos
NASL: 1980, 1981 (runner-up)
Belgium
European Championship: 1980 (runner-up)
Belgian Sports Merit Award: 1980
INDIVIDUAL:
Belgian First Division top scorer: 1976/77
Cup Winners Cup top Scorer: 1977/78
Ballon d’Or nomination: 1978
MOST MEMORABLE MATCHES:
1976 Cup Winners’ Cup: West Ham 2-4 Anderlecht (2 goals)
1978 Cup Winners’ Cup: Anderlecht 4-0 Austria Wien
