Wout Faes

Wout Felix Lina Faes ([ʋɑu̯t faːs]; born 3 April 1998) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as centre-back for EFL Championship club Leicester City and the Belgium national team.[3]

Wout Faes
Personal information
Full name Wout Felix Lina Faes[1]
Date of birth (1998-04-03) 3 April 1998
Place of birth Mol, Belgium
Height 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in)[2]
Position(s) Centre-back
Team information
Current team
 Leicester City
Number 3
Youth career
2003–2006 Rauw Sport Mol
2006–2012 Lierse
2012–2016 Anderlecht
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2016–2018 Anderlecht 0 (0)
2017 → Heerenveen (loan) 7 (0)
2017–2018 → Excelsior (loan) 19 (0)
2018–2020 Oostende 57 (1)
2020–2022 Reims 73 (5)
2020 → Oostende (loan) 6 (0)
2022– Leicester City 40 (2)
International career‡
2013 Belgium U15 5 (1)
2013–2015 Belgium U17 27 (0)
2016–2017 Belgium U19 9 (1)
2017–2020 Belgium U21 21 (0)
2022– Belgium 8 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22:34, 4 October 2023 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 21:47, 13 October 2023 (UTC)

A promising talent from the Anderlecht academy, Faes was sent on loan with Heerenveen and Excelsior in the Eredivisie, but never experienced his breakthrough with Anderlecht. As a result, he moved to Oostende, where he was able to grow into a solid starter. In January 2020, Faes was signed by Ligue 1 club Reims and was sent back on loan to Oostende for the rest of the season. He subsequently joined Leicester City in 2022.

Faes represented Belgium in youth levels, where he gained attention as the captain of Belgian national youth teams. He made his senior debut for Belgium in 2022 and was part of Belgium's squad in 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Club career

Early years

Faes moved to the Anderlecht youth academy from Lierse in 2012. He could then count on interest from Premier League club Chelsea and Manchester United,[4] but he still signed his first professional contract with Anderlecht.[5] From the 2015–16 season, Faes began practicing regularly with the club's first team.[6] A month after he took bronze with Belgium U17 at the 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup, he extended his contract with Anderlecht.[7] Faes reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Youth League with the club in both the 2014–15 season and the 2015–16 season, with him captaining the team in the latter campaign.[8]

Loans

Anderlecht sent Faes on loan to Dutch Eredivisie club Heerenveen for the second half of the 2016–17 season.[9] Anderlecht did not include an option to buy.[10] Faes made his debut in the Eredivisie on 1 April 2017. He came on as a substitute against Heracles Almelo in the 35th minute for Reza Ghoochannejhad. The defender then received a place in the starting lineup in all remaining games of the regular season. His last match for Heerenveen was the first leg of the semi-final of the play-offs for European football against Utrecht. Heerenveen ultimately lost twice to Utrecht, which meant that the club missed out on UEFA Europa League participation that season.[11]

On his return to Anderlecht, Faes was immediately demoted to the C-team by the new head coach René Weiler.[12] On 12 July 2017, it was announced that Excelsior had signed Faes on a one-season loan deal.[13] Shortly after his arrival, Faes was joined by a fellow countryman in Jinty Caenepeel.[14] The first three matchdays, Faes was in the starting lineup of head coach Mitchell van der Gaag, who emphasized defensive football, but afterwards he received less playing time due to the renewal of Jordy de Wijs's loan deal.[15] Despite the fact that De Wijs formed a very strong central defensive duo with Jurgen Mattheij that season, Faes made nineteen league appearances in the Eredivisie that season.[16]

Oostende

In the summer of 2018, Faes decided to permanently leave Anderlecht as he signed a three-year contract with first-tier club Oostende, where he was reunited with Gert Verheyen, his former coach from the national youth teams.[17] It was also Verheyen who had insisted on the club signing Faes.[18] In Ostend, Faes grew into a regular in the centre of the defense. In his first season, he missed only five league games, three of which were due to suspension and two due to a minor foot injury.[19] He also reached the semi-finals of the Belgian Cup with the club, in which the club was only knocked out after a penalty-shootout against Gent.

Faes was also an important force at Oostende in the 2019–20 season, who, however, experienced a rough season.[20] During the first half of the season, Faes' name regularly emerged in media as a potential sale object.[21] Faes, who played a good first half of the season and regularly wore the captain's armband, was eventually sold on 31 January 2020 to the French Ligue 1 club Reims.[22][23] Reims let Faes finish the season at Oostende on loan, who at that time were still involved in a relegation battle. The club was ultimately able regain themselves in the top-tier Belgian First Division A, although the club had not yet been mathematically saved when the competition was stopped due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Reims

After officially joining Reims from the start of the 2020–21 season, Faes made his Ligue 1 debut on 23 August 2020 in a 2–2 away draw against Monaco, in which he played the full match.[24] On 1 November, he scored his first goal for the club in a 2–1 home win over Strasbourg; a powerful header from a corner-kick taken by Valon Berisha.[25] He finished his first season with Reims with 35 appearances in which he scored two goals,[26] as the club finished 14th in the league.[27] Faes also featured in the Europa League qualifiers with Reims, who were eventually knocked out by Fehérvár in the third round.[28]

Leicester City

On 1 September 2022, Faes joined Premier League club Leicester City on a five-year deal for a reported fee of £15 million.[29] He made his debut for the club in a 6–2 loss against Tottenham on 17 September.[30] Faes was praised for his impact on the club's defence since his debut and in the seven Premier League games since the match against Tottenham, City recorded five clean sheets.[31] On 30 December 2022, in a 2–1 loss vs Liverpool, Faes became the fourth player in Premier League history to score two own goals in the same match.[32]

Faes scored his first goal for Leicester on 28 May 2023, against West Ham United. This goal was the second in a 2–1 win, but Leicester would be relegated to the Championship anyway due to Everton's 1–0 win over Bournemouth.[33]

International career

Faes' first taste of international tournament football was with Belgium U17s at the 2015 U-17 World Cup in Chile.[34]

He was called up to the senior Belgium squad for 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification matches, on 13 and 16 November against Estonia and Wales respectively,[35] and was an unused substitute in the Wales match. Together with Leicester City teammates, Timothy Castagne and Youri Tielemans, he was subsequently called up to Belgium's 2022 FIFA World Cup finals squad in November 2022.

Career statistics

Club
As of match played 4 October 2023
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[lower-alpha 1] League cup[lower-alpha 2] Europe Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Heerenveen (loan) 2016–17[16] Eredivisie 7000—1[lower-alpha 3]0—80
Excelsior (loan) 2017–18[16] Eredivisie 19010——00200
Oostende 2018–19[16] Belgian Pro League 26151——9[lower-alpha 4]0402
2019–20[16] Belgian Pro League 22020——00240
Total 48171000090642
Oostende (loan) 2019–20[16] Belgian Pro League 6000——0060
Reims 2020–21[16] Ligue 1 33100—2[lower-alpha 5]0—351
2021–22[16] Ligue 1 37420———394
2022–23[16] Ligue 1 30————30
Total 73520002000775
Leicester City 2022–23[16] Premier League 3112030——361
2023–24[16] EFL Championship 910020——111
Total 40220500000472
Career total 193812150201002229
  1. Includes KNVB Cup, Belgian Cup, Coupe de France, FA Cup
  2. Includes EFL Cup
  3. Appearance in Eredivisie Europa League play-offs
  4. Appearances in Belgian Pro League Europa League play-offs
  5. Appearances in UEFA Europa League

International
As of match played 13 October 2023[36]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Belgium 202210
202370
Total80

Honours

Belgium U17

Individual

References
  1. "FIFA U-17 World Cup Chile 2015: List of Players: Belgium" (PDF). FIFA. 28 October 2015. p. 3. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 November 2019.
  2. "Wout Faes". Leicester City F.C. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  3. "Belgium - W. Faes - Profile with news, career statistics and history - Soccerway". us.soccerway.com. Retrieved 10 April 2017.
  4. "Chelsea en Man Utd vissen naast Anderlechtspeler". Het Laatste Nieuws (in Dutch). 1 April 2014. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  5. "Talent Wout Faes tekent profcontract bij Anderlecht". Bruzz (in Dutch). 3 April 2014. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  6. "Beloftevolle Wout Faes blijft Anderlecht langer trouw". sporza (in Dutch). 21 December 2015. Archived from the original on 27 April 2016. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  7. "U17-revelatie Faes verlengt contract bij Anderlecht". De Morgen (in Dutch). 21 December 2015. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  8. "Bekijk hier hoe de Anderlecht-jonkies Arsenal kloppen". Gazet van Antwerpen (in Dutch). 10 February 2016. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  9. Timmer, Marco (31 January 2017). "SC Heerenveen verguld met komst talentvolle Belg". Voetbal International (in Dutch). Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  10. "Anderlecht laat grote belofte Wout Faes ervaring opdoen in Nederland". Gazet van Antwerpen (in Dutch). 31 January 2017. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  11. "Utrecht zet stap richting Europa tegen labiel Heerenveen". Algemeen Dagblad (in Dutch). 16 May 2013. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  12. "Weiler houdt grote schoonmaak". De Standaard (in Dutch). 17 June 2017. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  13. "Excelsior versterkt zich op huurbasis met Wout Faes". sbvexcelsior.nl (in Dutch). SBV Excelsior. 12 July 2017. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  14. "Ex-Gentenaar Caenepeel ruilt FC Eindhoven voor Excelsior Rotterdam". Het Nieuwsblad (in Dutch). 22 July 2017. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  15. "Wout Faes: 'Anderlecht is een gesloten hoofdstuk'". Sport/Voetbalmagazine (in Dutch). 31 July 2018. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  16. "Wout Faes » Club matches". WorldFootball.net. Retrieved 5 March 2023.
  17. "Anderlecht laat Wout Faes vertrekken naar KV Oostende, Doumbia (Essevee) naar Rusland". De Krant van West-Vlaanderen (in Dutch). 21 June 2018. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  18. Taecke, Tomas (25 June 2018). "Faes blij met overstap naar KVO: "Nooit een kans gehad bij Anderlecht"". Het Laatste Nieuws (in Dutch). Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  19. "KV Oostende mist sterkhouder tegen RSC Anderlecht". Voetbal België (in Dutch). 16 March 2019. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  20. "Sportieve en extrasportieve malaise bij KVO". Het Laatste Nieuws (in Dutch). 28 October 2019. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  21. "KV Oostende: investeerder zoeken en Faes verkopen". Het Nieuwsblad (in Dutch). 7 November 2019. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  22. Faesen, Bob; Geril, Jürgen (31 January 2020). "Oostende ziet Wout Faes naar Reims vertrekken, maar huurt hem nog tot het einde van het seizoen". Het Nieuwsblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  23. "Gert Verheyen kiest beste elftal van de heenronde, met alleen spelers van de 'kleine' ploegen: "Deschacht moet erin"". Het Nieuwsblad (in Dutch). 22 November 2019. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  24. "AS Monaco - Stade Reims 2:2 (Ligue 1 2020/2021, 1. Round)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 28 May 2021.
  25. Durand, Joachim (1 November 2020). "Le premier but de Wout Faes avec le Stade de Reims". Walfoot.be (in French).
  26. "Wout Faes | Football Stats | Stade de Reims | Season 2020/2021 | Soccer Base". soccerbase.com. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  27. "Tables - Ligue 1 Uber Eats". Ligue1. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  28. "Fehérvár-Reims 2021 History | UEFA Europa League". UEFA.com. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  29. "Leicester City Sign Wout Faes From Reims". www.lcfc.com. 1 September 2022. Retrieved 1 September 2022.
  30. "Tottenham 6-2 Leicester City: Premier League – as it happened". TheGuardian.com. 17 September 2022.
  31. "'Made for me' - How Leicester City summer signing Wout Faes has made instant impact". Leicester Mercury. 8 November 2022. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  32. "Faes scores two own goals against Liverpool". The Guardian. 30 December 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
  33. Hafez, Shamoon (28 May 2023). "Leicester relegated despite win over West Ham". BBC Sport.
  34. "Wout Faes, Belgium's natural leader". FIFA. 22 October 2015. Archived from the original on 30 October 2015. Retrieved 26 July 2017.
  35. "Martinez roept Dante Vanzeir en Wout Faes op voor WK-kwalificaties" [Martinez calls up Dante Vanzeir and Wout Faes for World Cup qualifiers]. sporza.be. 5 November 2021. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
  36. Wout Faes at National-Football-Teams.com
  37. "Archived copy" (PDF). www.fifadata.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 November 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  38. FIFA.com
  39. "Wout Faes plébiscité: le Belge élu meilleur joueur de Reims de la saison" (in French). Le Soir. 19 June 2022. Retrieved 20 June 2022.
  40. "Team of the Tournament". uefa.com. Union of European Football Associations. Retrieved 20 July 2015.
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