STEVEN FORTES IS THE REPLACEMENT FOR HENDRY

The replacement for Jack Hendry is Cape Verdean Steven Fortes (29). He comes over from Lens and played 24 matches in the French first division.

Fortes made his breakthrough with French second division side Arles in the 2013-2014 season. In his first season there, he was an immediate key player and that prompted a transfer to Le Havre. There he would remain a strongman in the heart of defence for three seasons. In 2017 he made the switch to Toulouse, in the French Ligue 1. There he stayed for a year and a half, until he signed with Lens, again in the Ligue 2, in January 2019. With Lens, he was promoted to first division in 2020 and he continued to play there this season. For example, he still started in their opening match against Stade de Rennes. The northern French now lend him to KVO.

Gauthier GanayeWe had to change gear quickly after Jack's departure but we are pleased to have Steven Fortes as his replacement. He has plenty of experience and should be able to take on the leadership role in our young core. Lens also uses a Gegenpressing system so our way of playing has no secrets for him. He has all the qualities to be successful in our system: strong in duels, always defending forward, ... So he will quickly integrate into our group. He has just come back from a slight injury but will join the group on Monday."

Integration will not be a problem indeed, as Kenny Rocha is a Cape Verdean and Thierry Ambrose is a former teammate and even a friend of his.