Mass exodus forces RFC Seraing to rebuild around Arnauld Mercier

RFC Seraing announced an exodus of over a dozen players and three members of the coaching staff, with nine contracts expiring on Tuesday 30 June and several others already departed, leaving head coach Arnauld Mercier to rebuild the squad ahead of the 2026‑2027 Challenger Pro League season.

The club confirmed the departures of Hamsely Akpa‑Chukwu to Zulte, Noah Solheid to Charleroi, Bassim Boukteb as a free agent and Jérémie Landu to Stockay earlier this summer. It also announced that Djibril Diarra, Cheikhou Ndiaye, Thiago Paulo Da Silva, Kevin Bukusu, Hady Camara and Arthur De Bolle will leave as their contracts expire on 30 June.

Three players on loan from FC Metz – Edouard Soumah‑Abbad, Abdoulaye Agne Ba and Diego Duarte – are also returning to their parent club as the loan agreements end. Their departures further increase the squad turnover.

On the coaching side, Stephane Delhalle and Valentin De Jaeger will not have their contracts renewed, while Thomas Evrard declined a proposed extension; Delhalle served as assistant coach (T2), De Jaeger as physical trainer and Evrard as video analyst for the first team during the 2025‑2026 season, with Delhalle previously assisting the youth side alongside Sven Leleux. Delhalle, De Jaeger and Evrard each held passionate roles with the senior squad this season.

RFC Seraing has not announced any new signings yet, but the sporting department says it is actively working behind the scenes to assemble a competitive core for the 2026‑2027 Challenger Pro League. The club added that the composition of the professional staff for the upcoming season will be revealed in due course.

The club’s U23 squads have already begun to strengthen, aware that they could be relegated this season. Strengthening the youth teams is seen as essential to avoid a rapid drop in division.

During the pre‑season, Seraing faced MVV Maastricht on 14 July, followed by friendlies against Metz, Feignies‑Aulnoye, Charleroi on 25 July and Flénu. These matches were intended to assess the remaining squad ahead of the league campaign.

The league campaign will open at home against Lokeren, then continue with an away fixture at Club NXT, a home game versus Lierse, an away clash with Dender and a home encounter with Sporting Hasselt, who were promoted. The first league match is scheduled for 14 August, a date the club hopes to be ready for.