Day 5

 

We travelled and hour and a half to Charleroi which is by the border of Belgium and France to play Club Charleroi.  At the moment they are 3rd or 4th from bottom of the table in the Premier League of Belgium.  We played a mixture of starters and reserves and it was obvious that these players were not nearly as disciplined or playing as nicely as Mechelen.  They played a lot slower pace and were not as strong but still they were very technical players and good on the ball.  We played at there training site which was in bad shape.  There were 3 fields and we played on the worst one.  It was very slanted all the rain water from the past few days was in the left corner of the field where I was meant to be crossing the ball and doing a lot of my work.  We played a lot better and lost 1-0 but were far more organized and the session we had in the morning to discuss some sort of game planned worked out nicely.  The coaches we had were happy with us because we did as we were told and I think because we tried so hard to do what we were asked, it showed in  a big way.  I always say that there are many ways to play well and win games, many formations and tons of things tactically involved in the game but if all players decide on one game plan and respect and listen to the coach as the leader of that game plan, teams finds success.  Everyone going the same directions is a lot more powerful than if everyone decides to go their own direction. 

 

Anyway, I thought I played well, even better than the other night as far as the game goes.  I created less opportunity by crossing and getting the the touchline but did other things very well, like defending and decision making with the ball.  The biggest plus for me is that I have hardly lost the ball and have still created chances at the right times.  This game has shown me once again that the Belgium Premier League is definitely a league that I can play in.  Playing professionally though, unfortunately, involves a lot more than simply just being good enough.  The right timing, the right coach and the right opportunity has to come your way to be able to compete.  This is what makes playing professional soccer so difficult to do for so many players.  Not all players get what they deserve in soccer, I think that is part of why the game is so interesting.