He was an exceptionally versatile player. He could play at right back, right mid, right wing or even striker. Swat Van der Elst was also very fast and could score from any situation. Nobody could run through a defence as quickly as he did. He became a national team player before he was 18 and scored two goals in Glasgow to send Belgium to the European Championship in 1980 in Italy. He also played the 1982 World Cup in Spain.