Jens Cools
Personal information
Date of birth (1990-10-16) 16 October 1990
Place of birth Westerlo, Belgium
Height 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in)[1]
Position(s) Defensive midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Lierse
Number 26
Youth career
1997–2010 Westerlo
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2010–2016 Westerlo 147 (10)
2016–2018 Waasland-Beveren 49 (5)
2018–2019 Pafos 25 (6)
2019–2022 Eupen 73 (3)
2022 Al-Riyadh 7 (1)
2023– Lierse 8 (0)
International career
2011 Belgium U21 2 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 13 October 2023

Jens Cools (born 16 October 1990) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Lierse. He gained two caps for the Belgium under-21 team.

Career

Westerlo

In the 2009–10 season, Cools was promoted from the youth academy to the first team of Westerlo, the club from the municipality where he grew up.[2] He made his professional debut one season later. After having played for six seasons in the first team, Cools' contract expired at the end of the 2015–16 season, as a result of which he left Westerlo on a free transfer.[2] A key player of the club during his time there, Cools managed to make 161 appearances for the club, in which he scored 12 goals.[1]

Waasland-Beveren

On 1 July 2016, Cools moved Waasland-Beveren after having been convinced by their manager Stijn Vreven. Cools signed a two-year contract.[3] He made 51 appearances for the club during his two seasons there, in which he scored two goals.[1]

Pafos

After two seasons, he chose to accept an offer from Cypriot club Pafos.[4] He experienced a strong season there in which he scored six goals in 25 appearances.[1]

Eupen

After playing in Cyprus for one season, Cools expressed a wish to return to his home country.[5] On 16 July 2019, Eupen announced that he had signed a three-year contract with them.[6] In his first season there, he made 27 appearances and scored one goal.[1]

In October 2020, he tested positive for SARS‑CoV‑2 during the COVID-19 pandemic.[7] Despite being sidelined for some time with the disease, Cools made 26 appearances and scored one goal during the 2020–21 season,[1] as Eupen finished mid-table in a disappointing 12th place.[8]

Al-Riyadh

On 26 July 2022, Cools joined Saudi Arabian club Al-Riyadh.[9][10] In December 2022, he was released by the club due to repeated injuries.[11]

Lierse

On 7 January 2023, Cools signed a year-and-a-half contract with Lierse.[12]

International career

Cools was called into the Belgian under-21 squad in March 2011. He made his debut for the Belgium under-21s on 24 March, replacing Luis Pedro Cavanda in the 82nd minute of a 1–0 win against Scotland.[13][14]

Career statistics

Club

As of 18 May 2019
Club Season League National Cup League Cup Continental Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Westerlo 2010–11 Pro League 21050––––260
2011–12 15000––10160
2012–13 Proximus League 26320––––283
2013–14 29342––––335
2014–15 Pro League 28000––––280
2015–16 28420––––304
Total 14710132001016112
Waasland-Beveren 2016–17 First Division A 36410––––374
2017–18 13110––––141
Total 495200000515
Pafos 2018–19 Cypriot First Division 25631––––287
Career total 22121183001024024

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Jens Cools at Soccerway
  2. 1 2 "Waasland-Beveren haalt Jens Cools weg bij Westerlo". Het Nieuwsblad (in Flemish). 2016-05-06.
  3. ↑ Collard, Timothy (2016-06-17). "Één van de opmerkelijkste transfers in België: "Na 19 jaar was het tijd om de stap te zetten"". Voetbalkrant.com (in Dutch).
  4. ↑ "Jens Cools 2 jaar naar Paphos". RTV (in Dutch). 2018-08-05.
  5. ↑ t'Sjoen, Arjan (2019-07-19). "Jens Cools is terug in België: "Ik wil met Eupen een goed seizoen draaien in 1A"". Voetbalkrant.com (in Dutch).
  6. ↑ Elst, Maarten (2019-07-16). "Eupen haalt ervaren Jens Cools terug naar België". Gazet van Antwerpen (in Flemish).
  7. ↑ Wens, Nils (2020-10-22). "Het coronavirus vindt nu ook zijn weg naar KAS Eupen: middenvelder heeft positief getest". Voetbalkrant.com (in Dutch).
  8. ↑ "Benat San José stopt bij Eupen, ex-speler Luis Garcia in beeld als opvolger". Het Nieuwsblad (in Flemish). 2021-04-26.
  9. ↑ "جينس كولس يمثل #مدرسة_الوسطى".
  10. ↑ "JENS COOLS HEEFT EEN NIEUWE CLUB GEVONDEN... IN DE WOESTIJN". 26 July 2022.
  11. ↑ "الرياض يخالص كولس" [Riyadh released Cools]. arriyadiyah.com (in Arabic). KSA Sport. 28 December 2022.
  12. ↑ "JENS COOLS NAAR LIERSE" (in Dutch). Lierse. 7 January 2023. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  13. ↑ "Belgium U21 1-0 Scotland U21". BBC. 24 March 2011. Retrieved 3 December 2022.
  14. ↑ "Internationale wedstrijden – KBVB". RBFA. Retrieved 3 December 2022.
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