Eupen and member of the Parliament of the German-speaking Community. The Golden Five Prior to their first season in the second tier of Belgian football, Eupen and their manager Paul Brossel were ambitious in the off-season: although considered one of the three best goalkeepers in the Bundesliga by the German sports press along with Sepp Maier and Manfred Manglitz, Gerhard Prokop signed from Alemannia Aachen before the 1970–71 season. Eupen lost their first home match against FC Malinois but won the next against Jean Nicolay's Daring Club Bruxelles, earning their first win in the second tier. After surviving their first season in the second tier, the club recorded another big signing during the off-season as Philippe Garot arrived at the Kehrweg. A few weeks later, a second German player, Helmut Graf, signed from Bonner SC. Eupen survived in the second division once again, finishing in tenth place in the 1971–72 season. At the end of the season and after six years at the club, Hubert Van Dormael was replaced by Gerhard Prokop, who took over the reigns as player-coach. But, lacking the funds, the club was forced to part with some key players at the end of the season, including Philippe Garot. Paul Brossel once again chose to recruit players in Germany in the off-season, with Rot-Weiß Oberhausen top goalscorer Ulrich Kallius arriving in Eupen at the start of the 1972–73 season. Kallius would go down in club history as one of their best strikers, scoring 16 goals in 25 games that season. Despite this, Eupen had an average season, finishing only in thirteenth place. Still in the throes of their financial woes, the club was once again forced to sell some of their best elements. Kallius and Graf joined Olympique Charleroi. To compensate for these departures, Paul Brossel managed to sign another German striker: using the money received for the sale of Kallius, he signed Rainer Gebauer, a striker from 1. FC Köln. The 1973–74 season also marked the return of Hubert Van Dormael, as coach, with Prokop regaining his status as a player. This proved a positive change, as the team occupied the top of the league standings in the fall. Slightly running out of steam, Eupen remained on course for promotion before the last matchday of the season against Lokeren. While Eupen were up 0–1 fifteen minutes before full-time, Lokeren scored on a penalty kick to equalise,