Crasson lets fly at 'defeatist' Anderlecht

Anderlecht defender Bertrand Crasson has blamed a defeatist attitude for Tuesday's defeat by Real Madrid.

"We have been told how exceptional Real are for weeks and that resulted in the way we played. I am sick of our resignation," moaned the Belgium star.

"The way we performed is not acceptable for a club like Anderlecht. We gave them too much respect," he added.

Coach Aime Anthuenis, who suggested before the match that his side would concentrate on damage limitation, summed up Crasson's comments later when he admitted: "I feared we would lose 5-0.

"In the second half it went better, but that also came because Real were satisfied with their lead and eased off a bit. I thought that was a dangerous tactic because if we had scored they would have been given a really hard time."

Ivica Mornar backed Crasson, but laid the blame on his team-mates. "I did not fear Real," said the striker. "But it seemed that not everyone thought the same way. We should have dared to take more risks."

The 2-0 defeat leaves Anderlecht with little hope of qualifying for the second stage of the Champions' League for the second year running.

The Belgian champions have been beset with problems this season following the break-up of last season's highly successful squad.

Coach Anthuenis has found it difficult to replace Jan Koller and Tomasz Radzinski, while several senior players have fallen foul of outspoken general manager Michel Verschueren.