Our Second Year In Professional Soccer: What Really Went Down

Andddd we’re back for Round 2! As I previously mentioned in my opening thoughts and in last week’s feature on our first year in the biz, each week I will be highlighting one of our previously completed seasons here in Germany. Personally, I think it’s important for us to get our (true) story out in the open so there are no misunderstandings, questions, or confusions. Not to mention, as crazy as some of these experiences were at the time, it’s almost amusing to reflect back on them now (haha). Sometimes I feel like the past few years of our lives could be made into a Lifetime movie with how much drama went down.

Okay, let’s jump right into it

After we knew we were leaving Magdeburg, the hunt for a new team began. At the end of June 2016, Ryan went on trial with SV Stuttgarter Kickers located in Stuttgart, Germany. It was about a 6-hour drive from Magdeburg, so Ryan and I packed the car and headed south together. Ryan was only on trial for about a week in Stuttgart before they offered him a 2-year contract. Hallelujah! At the time, he was beyond thrilled with the idea of making this particular move.

This club was in a league one tier lower than where he was previously playing, but to him, he saw this as a positive. He was certain this would mean more playing time for him and the opportunity to finally be a consistent starter on the team. In addition, this club had been known to be a good organization and very professional. Ryan also knew some of the other guys that were newly signed, and he was happy with the talent that was being brought in. He saw a lot of potential in the players and in the team as a whole.

After Ryan was offered the contract, we immediately drove back to Magdeburg, packed up our apartment, called a moving company, and got back in the car to head to Stuttgart just 2 days later. Needless to say, it was 2 days of stress, no-sleep, and pure chaos. But we’re not here to talk about our moving woes…

August → October

The summer preseason started off really strong! The team was working hard, appeared to be building chemistry, and everyone was determined to be successful that season. August rolled around and the opening weekend of the 2016/2017 season had arrived. About 5,000 fans were in attendance to see the first home game of the season at the home stadium of the Stuttgarter Kickers. Their opponent? The always-successful team, SV Waldhof Mannheim. Nevertheless, Ryan and his teammates went into this game feeling confident and ready to take home a win. The whistle blew, and the game began. 1 minute in, we were already down 0-1. And just 2 minutes after that…0-2. By the 10th minute, we were already losing 0-3 (insert large sigh here). Great start to the season, right? NOT! We ended up losing that game 3-2 and it was a huge wake-up call for everyone that this year was not going to be a cake walk.

In the first 3 months of the season, the Stuttgarter Kickers only managed to rack up 19 points after 16 games (4 wins, 7 ties, and 5 losses). It was a disappointing start, to say the least. At this point in time, the team was sitting in 10th place and the club was not happy with where the team stood and the lack of results they were seeing. After that 5th loss came in Week 16, the club decided to dismiss the head coach and search for someone to replace him.

November → December

While the head honchos searched for a new coach, they brought in a temporary replacement. In case it isn’t obvious, it is insanely difficult to bring in someone new to lead a team in the middle of a season. Or so I have been told (haha). Every coach has a different teaching style, playing style, tactics, and gameplan. To mesh a new style with an already “established” team is difficult to do! Especially when you only have 1 week before your next opponent is waiting for you on the field. Nevertheless, the team decided they were not going to let this affect them and they were determined to turn things around from here on out. Unfortunately, things did not improve much in the remaining weeks of the first half of the season. The Stuttgarter Kickers only brought home 5 points after 6 games (1 win, 2 ties, and 3 losses).

It was safe to say that EVERYONE was looking forward to Christmas vacation at this point. You could tell that tensions were high, the guys were frustrated, and the stress was getting to them. On the day before everyone left for winter break, the team was called into a meeting to meet their new head coach. The club had found a permanent replacement and they were all confident that this guy was going to be their saving grace, the man that turned things around and lead the team back to success. 3 coaches… and the season was only halfway through at this point.

January → March

The winter preseason with the new head coach appeared to be quite successful! The guys worked hard and were looking forward to the start of the second half of the season. Unfortunately, in that first month back, the team only earned 2 points in the first 4 games (2 ties, and 2 losses). They were creeping their way down the table and each week, putting themselves closer and closer to a relegation position and at risk of being dropped to a lower league.

The following game was considered to be a “huge” game for the club and for the team. Although it wasn’t against a team that was high up in the table, the result of this game would either put them into a relegation position or keep them out of a relegation spot for the time being. In the first 30 minutes of the game, the scoreboard sat at 0-0. Then, in the 39th minute, Ryan received a straight red card. The first red card he ever received in his professional career. Bad timing, right? Unfortunately, it only took 1 minute for the opposing team to score the first goal, and just 4 minutes later, a second goal. Our team lost that game 0-2 and placed the club in jeopardy of relegation.

What was even more unfortunate, was the fact that Ryan became the one to blame for the lack of success and the tough situation they were now facing. Was the red card stupid on his part? Of course it was! And Ryan knew that. But, was it fair to put the blame on 1 player because of a single mistake? Absolutely not. Come on guys, we all know there’s no “I” in “team”, right? At the end of the day, some people were upset about the team not doing well, so, unfortunately, they made Ryan the scapegoat.

If there was one point in the season where sh*t hit the fan, it was this very day. Suddenly, people were no longer “Team Ryan.” He faced people yelling at him, ignoring him, he got thrown dirty looks, had horrible things written about him and faced severe punishments. After he received the red card, Ryan was told to remove his things from the team locker room and that he wasn’t allowed back in until further notice. In addition, he had to pay a pretty hefty fine to the club and was told to report to training with the Stuttgarter Kickers 2nd team.

Up until this point, I never thought I would see Ryan more depressed or feeling more defeated than he felt in Magdeburg. However, looking back, I think this period of time was a thousand times worse than any of those difficult times he faced in the previous season. He felt as if no one supported him anymore, as if he no longer had people rooting for him, and as if he no longer mattered. From the man who used to wake up every day excited to go to training and put in the hard days at work, he now became someone who dreaded going in every day. If you have the pleasure of knowing Ryan personally, you know he is one of the most energetic, carefree, and positive persons you will ever meet. Well, if you spent any time with Ryan during these few months, you wouldn’t even recognize him! He had no interest in soccer, was quiet, discouraged, frustrated, and overall just not excited about his life in soccer. It was very unlike him.

April → May

When the club decided to lift his punishment, Ryan returned back to the first team in April. As upset as Ryan still was with everything that went down, he wanted to (try) and put this behind him, move forward, and end the season on a high note. Both of us just wanted him to get back on the field and play as much as he could before the end of the year. Unfortunately, things didn’t work out as we hoped they would because, after the red card situation, he only managed to clock 74 minutes for the duration of the season.

The end of the season

As if we needed any more drama thrown our way, after the very last game of the season, the team was told that every player was to report to the offices the following morning. They were informed that each player would have an individual meeting with members of the club to discuss plans for the following year. By the end of the day, 8 players, including Ryan, were told they no longer had a future at the club and they were being let go. My initial thought was, “Ummm, they can’t fire you, you have a contract for one more year, right?” Well, as it turns out, there are ways around that.

In Ryan’s individual meeting, he was told that after the red card happened, he was given a second chance, but things just didn’t work out. He was also told that if he was ever going to have a future in professional soccer, to never play a position in the middle because he does not have the skill to play there. His speed and strength are what he’s good at, so his only chance of succeeding in this career is to stick to an outside position. Spoiler Alert: Ryan currently plays defensive midfield for 1.FC Lokomotive Leipzig and has never been more successful in his professional career! I should also point out that in the one season at Stuttgart, he played 8 positions. Yup, you heard me correctly…8! He played every single position besides goalkeeper, center striker, and left back.

My thoughts

In case it isn’t completely obvious, it still hurts to think about and talk about certain aspects of this particular year. When Ryan and I think back on our time in Stuttgart, it’s always a smile/laugh/cry/anger combination. It was so upsetting and frustrating, yet so ridiculous at the same time that you almost can’t help but find it a bit comical. Sometimes we even joke and say that we don’t even remember parts of that season-like it’s all a blur! I guess we both repressed the memories a bit (haha).

To me, it’s such a shame that reflecting back on this year leaves a nasty taste in my mouth because it was not all bad! In fact, we were loving life for a large part of that year. We fell in love with the city of Stuttgart, did some really fun things, met amazing people, and made some great friends! However, seeing how much of a beat down Ryan got just shook me to the core. And what hurt, even more, was not being able to do much about it. I will say, I learned a lot from our first year in Magdeburg! This time around, I did my best to stay positive, supportive, and I had my chance to be the strong one for a change. This is where I think it’s important for players to have a loved one nearby. Whether that’s a wife, girlfriend, boyfriend, friend, parent, or anyone else, these guys need someone to vent to, cry to, and be strong for them when they can’t be. This is something I think Ryan and I improve upon each and every day!

This particular season was filled with so many emotions, challenges, and intensity, but at the end of the day, the only thing we could have done was pick ourselves up from off the floor and move forward! I was so incredibly proud of Ryan (and myself) for first and foremost, surviving this drama-filled season haha. But more seriously, for using his difficult times as fuel to propel himself forward and move on to bigger and better things. As soon as that last day in Stuttgart came and went, Ryan went full steam ahead and never looked back.

In a time where we thought we would never see the light at the end of the tunnel, Ryan got an offer for a new contract! This new team, 1.FC Lokomotive Leipzig was the train (literally and figuratively) that lead us out of the darkness and into the light.

Check back next Friday for Part 3 of the series! Next week, we’ll be chatting about our third season and the absolutely amazing year we both had with Lokomotive Leipzig!