No regrets for Wits’ Claasen
MIDFIELDER WENT ABROAD WHEN HE WAS JUST 18, BUT IT DIDN’T REALLY WORK OUT
Despite all the obstacles he faced during a nine-year stint playing abroad, Bidvest Wits midfielder Daylon Claasen remains one of the very few South African players to have managed to spend most of their careers outside of their comfort zones.
The Bidvest Wits midfielder was just 18 when he left the country, signing for Ajax Amsterdam in 2008. Things didn’t go as smoothly as he thought they would and he ended up having spells with Belgian top-flight club Lierse, also spending a season in Poland with Lech Poznan, before joining German second-tier side 1860 Munich in 2014, where he spent three seasons before deciding to come back home after the club was relegated at the end of the 2016/17 campaign.
In all those years, Claasen doesn’t have any regrets at all, with injuries also hampering his progress. But he is glad to have managed to spend most of his football career abroad, while many South African footballers have failed to do so.
The Klerksdorp-born player says there are different factors that could lead to a player to not being able to cope with playing overseas and one needs a strong mentality to succeed.
“Maybe because I went at a young age, it helped me. I was 18 when I went overseas, so I was able to adapt and settle. You know, when you are older you settle in your own ways, so when you go there at an older age it becomes difficult. But I don’t know, there are different factors that can make you decide to come back home,” said Claasen.
“I missed home so much because I played abroad for nine years and as you can see it’s not been easy. But I enjoyed my stay and it can’t be taken away from me. I feel blessed and humbled by the fact I was able to go there even though there are so many talented players in the country.
“It’s just that we don’t have as many opportunities as the guys do overseas. But it’s not easy to be that side, you have to be mentally strong.”
In his first season with Wits, Claasen enjoyed regular game time, but the club didn’t really live up to expectations, having won the Absa Premiership the previous year. Wits, however, have managed to bounce back to their best this current campaign with some improved performances.
It hasn’t really been a great campaign for the 28-year-old, who suffered an injury towards the end of last season. The midfielder is yet to feature for the Clever Boys’ senior team this season, having recently recovered from the injury.
He, however, has been getting games in the club’s MultiChoice Diski Challenge team and says he feels good to play and he is waiting on coach Gavin Hunt to call him up.
“I have been battling with fitness, the last time I played in the first team was last April, but I am coming along very well now and I feel good. This was the first game (against Maritzburg United MDC team in October) where I feel more like myself. I am just happy I can play 90 minutes now,” Claasen said with a
We don’t have as many opportunities as the guys do overseas
sigh of relief. “I haven’t played as much as I want to this season because of the injury. But I am looking forward to getting back, l missed many games since the injury but now I feel good and ready and it will all be up to the coach to call me. But on my side, I have to keep
on pushing hard.”
Breaking into the starting line-up won’t be easy for Claasen and he knows that very well, with the club having brought in a number of new faces at the start of the season.
He says the team have been playing quite well and the guys who came in have gelled quickly.
“They are doing very well, the team are doing better than last season. We just have to continue this way and you know it’s all about competition – when there is competition, players work very hard,” he added.
“Pre-season helps very much when there are new players so that they get to know each other
and gel as a team. I think they are doing well as a group and we should continue like this throughout the whole campaign – we just can’t relax, we have to keep on working hard.”