Finn Berk decided to put an end to his football career last summer at the age of 22. The central defender played for years in the AZ youth academy and shared the dressing room there with Owen Wijndal, Calvin Stengs, Myron Boadu and Peer Koopmeiners, among others. In FaceTiming with Finn, a new section on Football Zone, Berk speaks with trainers, agents, scouts and teammates he has met during his career. This week Berk speaks with Myron van Brederode, the nineteen-year-old wing attacker who is experiencing his breakthrough in the AZ first team this season.
By Finn Berk
Where did your sudden breakthrough suddenly come from?
“Becoming a professional footballer has always been my dream. Via AFC Amsterdam I was allowed to do an internship at AZ and then everything accelerated. At the same time, it was certainly a process with the necessary ups and downs. Now that I think back on it, it all turned out pretty special. Last season I was briefly put back to the Under 18 from Young AZ. When I was put away as ‘fat’ and ‘weak’, the penny dropped for me. I now regularly make minutes in the first team and I even have European matches to my name. So you see, things can change quickly.”
At what point did you think: this could get serious?
“In the Under 16 I got the realization that it could just go very quickly. Boys in my team were offered a contract and not much later I also signed my first contract, immediately for three years. It showed that they had faith in me. This was followed by my debut for the Dutch youth teams. That was quite a turbulent period: I received my first salary and dozens of agents contacted me. At such a moment you have to make a choice. I invited two home. Based on feeling I chose Orlando Engelaar. He himself has experience at PSV and the Dutch, coaches several players and also kickboxing world champion Rico Verhoeven.”
How do you deal with setbacks in the football world?
“In the Under 18 I made the move to Jong AZ. It went well and I felt good. The danger may then be that you start thinking about it too easily. That happened to me too. You suddenly get a lot of attention and people say they like you. In the matches it was also quite easy for me, so laziness was lurking. Being happy with a good pot is of course fine, but you also have to want to get better every day and train hard. There was still some profit to be made for me. I skipped or did half strength training because I thought I wouldn’t need it. After all, everything went well.”
Who made the turnaround?
Khalid Boulahrouz. He started to tackle me more and more, because I didn’t take it so closely with my diet either. That came in hard, but now I understand that he and others meant well and that something had to change. After many conversations with people within the club, I have seen the light and I have realized that there is more to becoming a professional football player. Unfortunately, this insight only came after I was transferred back to the Under 18. That was apparently what I needed. But hey, better late than never.”
On May 14, 2022 you were asked to join the first team. How was that?
“When I heard that I could train with the first team, I immediately hoped that I could make my debut. The last game was no longer about anything, so I had high hopes. During the warm-up of my first official match at AZ 1, I had a very proud feeling. You see the supporters and realize that you have done it all these years for this. In the second half, Pascal Jansen shouted: ‘Van Brederode, warm up!’ From that moment on, the tension rose. My parents and friends were in the stands. Suddenly it dawned on me that I could make my Eredivisie debut. And that moment also came. Ten minutes before the end I came in with a few good actions and the tension slipped off me.”
What changed for you then?
“Immediately after the game my phone exploded and everyone congratulated me. As a result, it was a successful day and it felt like a well-deserved reward after years of hard work. Well, with one short exception, haha! This season I am stuck with the selection and I play much more than I dared to dream. I also scored my first goal in Europe and I am very proud of that. In short, it’s going well. At the same time, many things are changing, so I have gained a lot of new ‘friends’. Then you suddenly get questions from people you haven’t seen for years whether you have tickets for them or they say that you should meet up again soon.”
And what about ‘the slides in the DM’?
“Of course I was always good with the girls, haha! But I also pay attention to that, because it makes sense that there will be more attention. I try to keep thinking who has been with me since day one, before my career took off. That’s what I focus on. I try to avoid negative reactions on social media, it’s still annoying and you never really get used to it. I have to learn to deal with the fact that I am now a bit under a magnifying glass. The same applies to this interview: we agreed spontaneously and made an appointment. But I should have asked permission from the press secretary first. That takes some getting used to. For now I hope to play more and more minutes, keep training hard and hope to play in London or Madrid one day.”