Nick Gillekens

Nick Gillekens (born 5 July 1995) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Belgian First Division A club Westerlo.

Nick Gillekens
Personal information
Full name Nick Gillekens
Date of birth (1995-07-05) 5 July 1995
Place of birth Leuven, Belgium
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Team information
Current team
 Westerlo
Number 20
Youth career
2001–2006 VK Rode[1]
2006–2010 Tienen[1]
2010–2014 OH Leuven
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2014–2019 OH Leuven 58 (0)
2019–2022 Mouscron 19 (0)
2022– Westerlo 8 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 13 October 2023

Career

Gillekens debuted for OH Leuven in the 2014–15 Belgian Cup in the sixth round match against Kortrijk, a 1–3 loss. However, that season he was part of the reserves and only fourth goalkeeper behind Logan Bailly, Yves Lenaerts and Senne Vits. Later that season he also played one match in the 2014–15 Belgian Second Division against Mons. Although Gillekens was promoted to third keeper for the 2015–16 season, he did not play a single match that season. Following the relegation from the 2015–16 Belgian Pro League, first goalkeeper Rudy Riou was released, while second goalkeeper Yves Lenaerts had already signed for ASV Geel.

As such, Gillekens was promoted to first goalkeeper for the 2016–17 season in the Belgian First Division B. During the winter 2017–18 transfer window OH Leuven signed Kawin Thamsatchanan, captain of the Thailand national football team and soon thereafter, Gillekens was demoted to reserve goalkeeper. Following Thamsatchanan's injury during the 2018–19 season, Gillekens again became the first goalkeeper for a few matches before being surpassed by Laurent Henkinet. Towards the end of the season, Gillekens was even demoted to third goalkeeper, with Thamsatchanan now taking his place on the bench. After the season's final match, it became clear that Gillekens would not be signing a new deal at OH Leuven.

After being a free-agent player for a few months, Gillekens was signed by Mouscron in the beginning of November 2019, as their first goalkeeper Jean Butez had suffered a long-term injury.

Personal

During his period at OH Leuven, Gillekens played together with his younger brother Jordy Gillekens.

References
  1. OHL-doelman Nick Gillekens: “Elke dag bewijzen dat ik mijn plaats verdien”, nieuwsblad.be, 12 August 2016


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