Karim Rekik is watching the clash between Feyenoord and Olympique Marseille with great interest. The 27-year-old defender of Sevilla has been active for both teams in the past and warns the team of coach Arne Slot before the return in Marseille. “Next week in Marseille it will really be survival,” said Rekik.
Rekik was under contract with Olympique Marseille between 2015 and 2017 and is therefore familiar with playing at the Stade Vélodrome. “Marseille is a madhouse. To call it hell for the opponent is just a bit of an exaggeration, but the supporters stir things up as we do not know in the Netherlands,” says the defender in conversation with the club. Eindhovens Dagblad† “You have to get through that in the first phase of the match. You prepare yourself for it in advance, but you are still surprised.”
Rekik played in Feyenoord’s youth academy for two years before making the move to Manchester City. At Sevilla, the defender, who is nowadays often drafted as a left back, is assured of a base place and a return to the Netherlands is therefore not an option. Should this happen in the future, then a return to Feyenoord is in any case out of the question. “If I ever come back to the Netherlands, it will only be at PSV. Not because I don’t appreciate Feyenoord, but I really broke through in Eindhoven and got the chance from Phillip Cocu and Marcel Brands to reach the top.”
“I will never forget the release after the title in a fantastic year,” said Rekik. “PSV just suited me very well as a person. The calm, putting things into perspective and still doing everything to reach the top, that really appealed to me.” Now that the defender gets to play in LaLiga every week, the four-time international of the Dutch has not yet put a return to the Dutch national team out of his mind. “When I’m fit, I play for one of the top teams in Spain. I am just fully engaged in performing well at Sevilla and of course I am open to a role for the the Dutch, if that comes up again in the future.”