Walter Baseggio

Walter Baseggio (; born 19 August 1978) is a retired Belgian professional footballer who played as a central midfielder.

He spent most of his 15-year professional career with Anderlecht, amassing Belgian Pro League totals of 285 games and 48 goals and also representing in the competition Mouscron. He won major nine titles with his main club, including five national championships.

Club career Born in Clabecq, Wallonia, Baseggio made an impressive debut for R.S.C. Anderlecht aged 17, against old rivals Standard Liège, and scored his first goal in the same game. At the time a hot prospect for the future, he was in direct competition with Enzo Scifo and Pär Zetterberg, two players whose talent was already confirmed; eventually he became a first-team regular, and then the maestro of the team after the departures of the pair in the late 1990s.

With the return of Zetterberg in the summer of 2003, Anderlecht coach Hugo Broos decided that there was no room for both players, and Baseggio found himself with few game opportunities, until the manager was fired in February 2005. After a disappointing end of season, he also played second-choice for new coach Franky Vercauteren; the owner of an extremely powerful shot, he scored the 1–1 equalizer in an eventual 2–1 win against R.A.A. Louviéroise in mid-November 2004, hitting the ball with such power that it burst.

In the 2005 summer Baseggio was transfer listed, joining Italy's Treviso F.B.C. 1993 in January 2006 and being relegated from Serie A in his first year. However, in the mid-season interval of the next season, he returned to Anderlecht: in his two stints with the Brussels club, he won four leagues, although he was only a fringe player in the last conquest.

After only three matches in the first part of the 2007–08 campaign, Baseggio moved again in January, joining R.E. Mouscron for an undisclosed fee, with a contract due to expire in June 2010. On 20 May of that year, the 31-year-old signed a three-year deal with A.F.C. Tubize in the second division, being a free agent since late in the previous year after the former side had folded due to serious financial problems. He played the remainder of his career in amateur football, representing Patro Lensois and ETSP Brainoise.

International career Baseggio made his Belgium debut on 27 March 1999 (aged 20) in a 1–0 friendly loss in Bulgaria, going on to collect a further 26 caps. He did not take part, however, in any major international tournament, being injured for both the UEFA Euro 2000 and 2002 FIFA World Cup competitions.

Illness Baseggio was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in June 2009. After being given the all-clear by doctors in 2010, he announced in May 2012 the cancer had returned.

Career statistics International

Scores and results list Belgium's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Baseggio goal. + List of international goals scored by Walter Bassegio

Belgian First Division: 1999–00, 2003–04, 2006–07 Belgian Cup: runner-up 1996–97 Belgian Supercup: 2000, 2001, 2007 Belgian League Cup: 2000 Belgian Sports Team of the Year: 2000

Individual Belgian Young Professional Footballer of the Year: 1998–99, 1999–2000 Belgian Professional Footballer of the Year: 2000–01