Dutch professional footballers can be found in all corners of the world, from the spotlights of the major European leagues to the more adventurous employments on other continents. In the Over de Grens section, Voetbalzone speaks weekly with a player who is active outside the national borders. This time, attention is focused on Daan Rienstra, who had his contract with RKC Waalwijk terminated last year for an adventure at a hyper-ambitious Greek club.
By Thijs Verhaar
Bad WiFi. That is the only thing that Rienstra can come up with as a downside about his first nine months in the Greek coastal town of Volos. Indeed, the connection is automatically disconnected three times during the interview, after which the midfielder explains with a smile that he has absolutely nothing to complain about in his apartment right next to the Aegean sea. “It is almost always sunny and my girlfriend and I can be on the beach in five minutes for a coffee or drive to the mountains for a nice walk. That’s all perfect. And secretly it is sometimes nice not to receive messages on your phone ”, he smiles. “That WiFi is only difficult if you want to make a call with your family and friends, but that will always work out in the end.”
In that respect you can compare his telephone calls with his career. As captain of RKC Waalwijk, he played for years in the Kitchen Champion Division, waiting for that one opportunity in the Eredivisie and once active at the highest level, he waited patiently for a chance to experience a nice foreign adventure. “I really wanted that, because after five years at RKC I had the feeling that I was ready for something new and I soon received an offer from Volos.” Rienstra received an offer to come and have a look in Greece, was called the same day by the club president that he really had to come and was called again a few hours later with the message that the flight ticket had already been prepared for him. “That expressed a lot of confidence.”
Nevertheless, Rienstra took a few days to think about everything with friends, family and especially his girlfriend. Is it worth giving up everything in the Netherlands together for an adventure at a Greek club that you don’t or hardly know? “I also talked a lot about this with my brother, who was still playing football in Turkey at the time. He also told me to do it and actually everyone quickly came to the conclusion that we should go for it. The offer was good, the location beautiful and they play at the highest level in Greece. Those were three pluses and it’s a gamble if you go to a club abroad anyway. You never have real certainty, so sometimes you just have to go for it if you want to get the most out of life. ”
Daan Rienstra played exactly 150 games for RKC Waalwijk, where he became captain.
Rienstra had an agreement with RKC that he could terminate his contract if he received a foreign offer, so he boarded a plane to Greece as a clubless player. “At first only, because my girlfriend was still at work with a notice period. And in any case I hadn’t signed yet, so for the same money I would have stood on the sidewalk again two days later with a sad face. After all, I still had to pass the medical examination, but fortunately that did not cause any problems. ” The midfielder also expresses his gratitude to RKC for granting him the adventure. “I experienced wonderful moments there anyway, which I wouldn’t have missed for the world.”
Especially the promotion to the Eredivisie in the 2018/19 season triggered a lot in him. “Of course! That is what we have all done it for all these years. And I also liked the season at the highest level, even though we would probably have been relegated without breaking off the competition. In the end, with some luck, the club stayed in it and now they are doing very well. Last year we already received compliments for the game, but the points were not forthcoming ”, the midfielder analyzes. Now the team of Fred Grim is achieving the necessary victories and they are well above the line, so would Rienstra not want to be there? “No, I don’t look at it that way. I wanted something different and I have to do what I think is best for my career. I think I went at exactly the right time and I really enjoy working at Volos. ”
That club was founded four years ago after the two existing teams from the coastal town could not agree on a merger. Subsequently, entrepreneur Achilleas Beos decided to set up a club himself. He bought a license from a third divisionist and forged a squad that immediately gained promotion twice in the first two years and effortlessly maintained itself at the highest level in year three. “This season we are even seventh in the Super League, while we have one of the smallest budgets,” explains Rienstra – who only missed one game this season due to a red card and played everything else. “In a way, it is as if RKC ends just behind the subtop in the Eredivisie. You should see it that way. ”
Seen in this way, the seventh place in the ranking is a fantastic achievement, but at the same time it is also the place that no Greek club wants to have. You just miss the play-offs for European football and are therefore sentenced to participate in the relegation pool. “But even if we lose everything from now on, I don’t think we’ll be relegated. That’s how big the gap is with the bottom two teams ”, says Rienstra, who can nevertheless charge himself effortlessly for the remainder of the competition. “Throwing in the hat is not accepted here anyway. The president is far too ambitious for that, because this is his child, for which he is willing to do anything. He is a real football fanatic. I always see him at the club: before matches, during matches, afterwards. Always.”
And in addition to the fanatic chairman Beos, sports fans from Volos must also be convinced with good matches and appealing results. After the corona crisis, they have to take place in the Panthessaliko Stadium, which can accommodate a total of 22,700 spectators. “I have no idea how many fans we have after four years. Of course I can’t see that now because of the empty stadiums, but I think that many people have a long-standing bond with the two other clubs in the region, Niki Volos and Olympiacos Volos, ”said Rienstra. “However, they both play at a slightly lower level and we are doing well in the Super League, so I think people will gradually switch to us. We also play appealing football and the results are also excellent. ”
For next season, Volos even has the ambition to compete for European football. The problem, however, is that five of the six participants in the championship pool are pretty much fixed in advance. Olympiacos, Panathinaikos, PAOK Saloniki, AEK Athene and Aris count as the big five and the other teams can compete for the sixth and final ticket, Rienstra explains. “We have been able to compete for that for a long time this season, so it was an educational experience for us. Especially when you consider that the first objective was not to be relegated. That will be effortless with our points total. So our mission has already been accomplished, although we started the season with difficulty. ”
The midfielder thus refers to the preparation, in which trainer Sakis Tsiolis was already dismissed after 37 days. “That was quite a shock, yes. Oops. He was a fan of mine and with a new trainer you will have to wait and see ”, Riensta reflects. “After all, I didn’t come here to sit on the couch for a year.” However, the Spanish coach Ángel López also seemed to see it in him, so the Dutchman’s concerns turned out to be unfounded. “I signed a 1 + 1 season contract, whereby my contract would be automatically renewed if I played at least 25 times. The counter is now at 24, so it looks fine. ”
The 28-year-old midfielder does not rule out that he will be active in Volos again next season. “I would be happy to stay here for a longer period of time, but would also like to go to America again,” said Rienstra, who in any case does not intend to be abroad after one year, just like his two-year older brother Ben to make a comeback in the Eredivisie. “No, I don’t feel the need to return to the Netherlands right now. In my first months in Volos I saw how much fun life can be here without corona measures and I also just notice that I am learning more as a person and as a football player. Football is experienced differently here and the game is much more physical. ”
Rienstra explains that in principle his team tries to build up, but that game idea goes overboard with many Greek teams as soon as it goes wrong with the position play a few times. “If that happens three times in the first half, it will be over again. Or even after two or once, if there is a really big chance. Here you will soon see a long ball forward, where it is crucial that you win the second ball. From there you push through, instead of standing on your own half ”, says the midfielder, who has had to adapt a lot to this. “You come into duels much more often, but luckily you get used to it quickly. It is different to play football, but in terms of level it is perhaps comparable to the Eredivisie, although many people will think not. ”
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Rienstra, however, states that the top five teams are comparable to the left row of the Eredivisie. “PAOK and Olympiacos, for example, have both done well against PSV, but then we are right about the real top of Greece. For example, we also lost 4-1 to Olympiacos halfway through the season and 1-2 at home last weekend. ” The team that eliminated PSV effortlessly becomes champion and the differences behind it are relatively small, Rienstra emphasizes. “You don’t see many big results, because everything is reasonably well-matched. That makes it exciting and for me it is also nice that I occasionally run into Dutch players. Recently I played against Jonathan De Guzman and Luc Castaignos at OFI Crete and Bart Schenkeveld is also doing well here at Panathinaikos. ”
The Greek Super League thus proves to be a great competition for Dutch people who are looking for a sunny outing in their career. “So I can see myself staying here for a few years, although I also have the ambition to embark on another foreign adventure”, concludes Rienstra, who would like to return with his brother Ben, now active at Fortuna Sittard. the field would be. Will they be able to go to his dream America together at the end of their careers? “That would be really cool, but it depends on the offer and the timing. Unfortunately, you cannot plan a football career in advance. If you had asked me to play at Volos two years ago, I would have said ‘no’. And now I seem to be having a great time here, so you never know how things will turn out. ”