The idea was actually that Karim Loukili would advance to the Eredivisie as soon as possible after his return to the Dutch fields. After an excellent season at Helmond Sport, the 24-year-old wing attacker now opts again for a foreign adventure at Riga FC. The reigning champion and frontrunner of Latvia convinced Loukili with decisive action and the prospect of European football. “I thought: if I don’t seize the opportunity to play European football with Riga now, such an opportunity may never come around again. It would have been a risk to wait,” Loukili says in conversation with Football zone.
By Chris Meijer
These have been hectic days for Loukili to say the least: on Thursday he flew to Riga to smooth out the last folds, on Friday he signed a two-year contract, on Saturday he was on the reserve bench for the first time against Spartaks Jurmala and His first European game then awaits on Thursday, when North Macedonian champions Shkendija comes to visit in the second round of the Conference League. And in between, there are also a number of visits on the program in the search for an apartment in the center of the Latvian capital. “It went very quickly, last week they became very concrete”, nods Loukili. There was some pressure for Riga, as the Latvian transfer window already closed last Friday.
There is actually no time for Loukili to acclimatize. Riga is in the middle of the season, which runs over the calendar year in Latvia. The four-time champion leads the Virsliga, although it has played more games than its closest pursuers. Earlier this month Riga was active in the first qualifying round of the Champions League, where the Swedish champion Malmö FF was just too strong: 1-0 in Sweden, 1-1 in Latvia. “I was in preparation for Helmond and I didn’t play any matches at all. You have to keep up with it right away, there is no time to take your rest or train less hard. During the preparation you sometimes take it easy for a day. But now I have to jump right in, there are no excuses to slow down.”
It was clear this summer that Loukili’s period at De Braak would be limited to one season. Helmond Sport gave the former youth international a chance a year ago, after he had disappeared from the radar after his departure from FC Utrecht via CR Al Hoceima in Morocco, Jong Sparta Rotterdam and the German Phönix Lübeck. “Helmond Sport has kind of become my club. I only played there for a year, but got a chance and took it. They just also knew that I probably wouldn’t play there for more than a year, that it was a springboard to move on. Since I still had a year contract, this was also the time to sell me. In that respect we have benefited a lot from each other,” says Loukili. With 9 goals and 4 assists, he had a strong season with the number twelve of the Kitchen Champion Division.
‘With Van de Beek and Frenkie it went faster, with me it is a bit more difficult’
Voetbalzone spoke with Karim Loukili more than a year ago when he played for Phönix Lubeck about the setbacks at the time when a breakthrough at FC Utrecht seemed imminent, the dramatic adventure in Morocco and the choice for Germany.
It resulted in the necessary foreign interest. For example, a Turkish club specifically reported to Helmond Sport. “There was interest from the Netherlands here and there, but nobody followed through. My goal was to make a step to the Eredivisie, I also expected clubs to be a bit more concrete. It could have been that those clubs had become concrete in August. But maybe the right club hadn’t come in the end. I’ve had a good season at Helmond and really wanted to take a step forward. How nice is it to play European football from Helmond? It is a dream to play European football. If you want this in the Netherlands, it is only possible at Ajax, PSV, AZ and Feyenoord. It was a great moment to take this step abroad. I am a lot older and more mature. Ultimately, this is the right time for me to go abroad again.”
When Loukili learned of Riga’s interest, he decided to research the club. His conclusion: it may not be the best competition in Europe, but it is a club that always plays for the top spots and has a good chance of reaching European football. The reception in Riga definitely convinced him. “When I flew here, I was picked up and brought to the club. I received a presentation from the chairman and the sporting director, they showed me with images why they wanted me and what they expect from me. They had a lot of tidbits and facts about me, for example that I last season in the Kitchen Champion Division the most expected assists had. Those have not become goals, because the fellow players did not finish the chances. But they are convinced that the strikers here finish nine out of ten chances. In other words: if I continue my game, a nice collaboration can arise. That made me feel even more that this is what I want. Contractually and financially it’s great, but the welcome and the fact that they knew everything about me was an extra push.”
Loukili has signed a contract with Riga until mid-2023.
“They made me feel like they wanted me 100 percent. As a result, I noticed that I was really met as an asset and not as a width gain. How they spoke about me, contractually, everything around it, in the negotiations with Helmond Sport: they made it clear that they really wanted me,” Loukili continues. What he saw in Riga convinced him even more that he had made the right choice. “It is a powerful club. The complex is abnormal: three or four perfect pitches, a swimming pool in the locker room, saunas, steam baths, ice baths, player hotels, a restaurant. Really great. I didn’t expect it to be that great, to be honest. I can develop well here. The club lives in the city, you are recognized and many supporters come to the stadium.”
Less than two weeks after coming to Latvia, Loukili is waiting for his first European away game, in Skopje’s Toše Proeski Arena against Shkëndija. If Riga survives the diptych with the champion of North Macedonia, the third heat of the Champions Path towards the group stage of the Conference League a meeting with Folgore of Hibernians. “The champions of San Marino and Malta, those are also countries where you don’t come 1,2,3. It is certainly another experience to take with you in your luggage. I’m really looking forward to it. It would be nice if we met a Dutch club in the group stage. Feyenoord away in a full Kuip, I would sign for that.”