Playing in the PSL is still on the list for me!

Liam Bekker: Hi Lars. Congratulations on scoring on your league debut for Jeonbuk Motors. That must have felt like the perfect start to life with your new club?

Lars Veldwijk: Hi Liam. Yeah, it was! Unfortunately, the week before I picked up a small injury and I had to miss the first game of the season (against Suwon Bluewings) so I was really disappointed and a little bit emotional, but now this weekend (against Busan IPark) everything turned around for me. I had only trained twice with the group two days before the match so to come on for the last 30 minutes and score the winning goal in the last minutes was a great feeling.

LB: You mentioned that you missed the start of the season through injury, what happened and have you fully recovered yet?

LV: Almost. I still have a little problem in my knee but there has been no new reaction after the game. I picked up a small injury in the last friendly match six days before the league started so I was really disappointed, but now the knee feels good and I just have to make it a little bit stronger and do some more exercises and treatment, but it’s going good now.

LB: We’re glad to hear it! Now, as one of the precautions against the Coronavirus, all of the matches in South Korea are being played behind closed doors. What has the atmosphere been like without any fans in the stadium?

LV: I was really happy that we finally started the league, but to play without fans is something new and something strange to me. Normally, I was used to playing in full stadiums or with a lot of people around, so it’s a strange feeling and you can hear everything (even though) there’s no sound. It’s not the way you want it to be, but I’m really happy that I can play. But it is a strange situation.

LB: Ahead of your return to the pitch, were you at all concerned about your health and safety because of the ongoing coronavirus crisis?

LV: Not really because the situation here in South Korea is now – and it has been for a long time – quite good and under control. People are really following the rules of the government and everything is well organised here. There’s never been a strict lockdown in South Korea, so

Having previously starred for clubs across the Netherlands, Belgium, Norway and England, Bafana Bafana striker Lars Veldwijk is now blazing a trail in South Korea. The 28-year-old recently became the first footballer from South Africa to feature in the K League 1 and marked his league debut in style with a 93rd minute winner against Busan IPark. In this interview with Soccer Laduma’s Liam Bekker, he discusses the motivation behind his move to the two-time AFC Champions League winners, his feelings toward football’s return amid the coronavirus, and how he nearly ended up in the PSL before moving to Asia. everything was always open, and people are extra sharp with everyone wearing a mask and washing their hands a lot. Everywhere you go, they (the local authorities) check your temperature and you can wash your hands with the disinfectant gels so I was not really scared because we’ve also always been training as normal as well.

LB: When you say training as normal, is that full contact sessions with your teammates or are there any social distancing measures in place?

LV: Yeah, it’s always full contact training. There’s no social distancing rule here – you have seen it with my goal, when I scored against Busan, I got a lot of hugs, ha, ha! So that rule has never been here, and that’s because people have been really good at following the rules with the wearing of the masks and the washing of hands.

LB: Interesting! Back to the pitch, Jeonbuk have made a strong start to the season. What are the team’s objectives moving forward?

LV: I have signed for the biggest club in South Korea and they are, for the last four seasons, the champions of the league*. So, for us, as a team, we want to go for title number five in a row, so we want to be the champions again. It’s difficult because all of the other teams in the league are looking forward to playing against us and they are happy when they (can earn a) draw against us so sometimes we will play against really defensive teams.

*Ed’s note: Jeonbuk Motors were handed a nine-point penalty deduction during the 2016 K League 1 campaign after one of the club’s scouts was found guilty of bribing a referee three years earlier. This points deduction ultimately saw the club end in second place in the league standings for the season, three points behind eventual champions Seoul FC.

LB: And your personal goals for the campaign?

LV: For me, as a target, I’ve never been a champion in my life. I’ve been

second twice (with Excelsior Rotterdam and Sparta Rotterdam in the respective 2013/14 and 2018/19 Eerste Divisie campaigns) so as a person I want to be champion at least once in my career. And then, of course, I also want to play a lot of games and help the team with my goals this season.

LB: You’re the first South African to play in South Korea’s K League 1. What was your motivation behind joining Jeonbuk?

LV: For me, I didn’t know a lot about the South Korean league (before the move), but I like to take this adventure and learn a new culture and about the people. It’s a different style of play for me again and I think that it’s good for me as a player to learn a lot of different styles of football, like the African, Asian and European styles, while also learning more about the culture of other people, which I’m really interested in.

LB: You have now played in the Netherlands, Belgium, England, Norway and South Korea. Will we ever get to see you playing in the PSL in South Africa?

LV: I actually spoke last summer with one team in South Africa and was close to signing for one of the PSL teams but unfortunately it didn’t go through then. So, I was close to that, and also in the winter again I spoke with one of the coaches of one of the teams in South Africa. It’s possible. I think – I will not say for sure that I will come – but it’s still on the list for me and I really want to come and play in the league in South Africa one day.

LB: Any chance you’ll tell us which team it was?

LV: Ha, ha! No, I’m not going to tell you that, but it’s a good team!

LB: Fair enough! Before we wrap up, I’d like to catch up on last year’s Africa Cup of Nations, which was your first international tournament with Bafana. What was that experience like for you?

LV: That was a great experience. The tournament didn’t go really well for us even though we had some really good results and we beat Egypt, but we had a difficult group and there were some tough matches for us. For me, as an experience though, to be there with the team was amazing and the win against Egypt in front of thousands of people, I will never forget it.

LB: Were you disappointed not to go all the way and win the tournament?

LV: We could have gone through because the game against Nigeria (2-1 quarter-final defeat) was not our best game and still we only (lost to) a really late goal, which was disappointing. I think the team and Bafana Bafana has so much quality and that we as the players didn’t fully show what we could do in that tournament, even though we made it to the quarter-finals.

LB: Is it a goal to go one step further at next year’s competition (depending on whether or not it happens due to the Coronavirus)?

LV: Yeah, for sure. The last few times I’ve not been picked for the national team but, of course, I hope to be back with Bafana Bafana if I score my goals here (at Jeonbuk) and play well. I know I’m not a typical South African player but I think that’s why I can help the team.

LB: What do you make of the plans to have the AFCON in January next year?

LV: For me, it would be in my pre-season because the league here in South Korea runs from February until the end of November. Last summer it was really hot in Egypt but I think it was possible to play in the summer, but it really depends on the country where the AFCON is going to be. I think for the players in Europe – and also the South African league might still be playing then – their clubs will not be happy to lose them in January.

LB: Let’s see what happens. Lars, thank you so much for your time and all of the best for the rest of the season.

LV: Thanks, Liam. Keep well. ❐