As if it was meant to be, Wout Brama appeared at the kick-off for the first time this season last Sunday during his farewell match. After 75 minutes it was over in the final of the play-offs, after which Ron Jans decided to give the club icon of FC Twente his well-deserved change of audience. His last meters in a full Grolsch Veste came in hard for Brama, who let his emotions run free. Football zone traveled to the training complex in Hengelo a day later for an extensive conversation with the man who was the only one who managed to win all prizes in the Netherlands with the same club.
By Mart Oude Nijeweeme
Wout, it’s over. Is it sinking in a bit already?
“A little. Real realization is yet to come. When I’m at my holiday address later and I see that the boys are starting here again. I think that would be really crazy. It will also take some getting used to not going to the club every day. That I don’t have to train, don’t play a role in the squad of this club.”
Did you sleep well on Sunday?
“Yes. I have to say that I always sleep well. Whether there is an important competition coming up or I have experienced something that has made a big impression. That never bothers me. I hope it stays this way. I also slept well on the night from Saturday to Sunday. After the game we went into town with a few players. When I got home I quickly read through all the messages I had received.”
Which message did you remember the most?
“Pooh, I really got a lot of messages. I’m having a hard time choosing one of them. My wife texted me before I even got to the dressing room. That was about the journey we had made together. That’s how I see it myself. We had a wonderful time, experienced a lot in eighteen years. It’s special to have done that with her. I like that. If you experience it together, you also experienced it together. You can talk about it and enjoy it for a very long time. I will certainly do that. But also former trainers, people I worked with. It has made an impression on me, nice words have been spoken.”
Brama received one of the nicest messages from his own wife.
The reactions to your farewell are also purely positive. There are very few people who don’t like you. Does that make you proud too?
“Absolute. I’ve always said I’m not just a footballer. I don’t derive my identity from that. People approach me that way, and I understand that, but I hope not to do that myself. You are only a football player for a short time in your life. In addition, you also have a relationship with people and you leave something behind in that way. I feel like I’ve been a pro as I think I should be. I got everything out of it, I’m convinced of that. Unlucky here and there, but also lucky. I have achieved more than I could have dreamed of as an eighteen year old. For me it has been more than successful.”
On your club channel, you said you weren’t 100 percent sure you were going to quit. That there is still a few percent in the back of your mind that tells you to keep going. Will you stop permanently?
“Yes, I’m really going to stop. A hundred percent. Only there is a small voice in my head that wonders why I say goodbye to the most beautiful profession in the world. I have spoken to a few former players and that voice will remain for a while. I spoke to Kenneth Perez. He also said it. But if you look at it, it’s a good choice. I am convinced of that.”
Have you asked more people for advice?
“No, because I think I can do it myself. I know what the situation is like, what the club thinks about it and what my family situation is like. I can decide that for myself.”
You were quite emotional after your substitution on Sunday. What were you specifically thinking about at that moment?
“It is over. I’m never going to experience this again. This is the most beautiful thing there is. Playing football in a full Grolsch Veste, the club that I love and that I really enjoy playing for. Football is also my passion. That is over and that is very painful. They were tears of sadness and of gratitude. At that moment, it is mainly a confirmation that it is ready.”
Did you expect saying goodbye to be so hard?
“Well actually yes. I felt it in the morning. A lot of emotions ran through my body. Sadness from the last time. Pack the bag one more time and drive to the stadium. That kind of melancholy stuff. At the same time I had competition tension, because I knew I was going to start. It was my first start of the season.”
Wout Brama let his emotions run free after his farewell.
“In addition, it was warmer than thirty degrees. All in all, you know that it is going to be very tough. If you then go to the side in minute 77, you are completely empty. I was up. I was already ten minutes “Then the emotions come up a little earlier. But that’s not a bad thing, it’s part of it. I really don’t like saying goodbye to professional football, but if I have to, then this way. This is not for everyone.”
Did it have to be that you were allowed to start on Sunday?
“It looks like it, doesn’t it? I don’t believe in that myself. On the other hand, I can’t get around it very well. I don’t think Sadílek gets yellow because it’s written somewhere. I do not believe that. No, I didn’t call Manschot, haha. It wasn’t a yellow card in my eyes, but Ron already said to me after the game: ‘What about Sunday?’ Like, get ready. On Friday I received confirmation that he also saw it in front of him and that I could start. That was a special moment.”
You are an icon of the club, we can say that. Can you briefly explain what the club means to you?
“I joined the club when I was 12. Now I’m 36. That means I played here for 24 years. I’ve been gone for a few years, let’s say 20 years. At 12 I was a kid. I have become a man, experienced successes, I am very grateful for that. All that at the club that I am a fan of, that is not given to many people. It is special to win prizes at a club outside the top three, where you usually do not win many prizes. History has shown that. That makes it all very special. I am very grateful for that. That’s the best word.”
From what point of view are you viewing it? Are you dreading something unknown, or are you looking forward to freedom?
“Especially that it is tasty. I’m not afraid that something will come up that doesn’t make me happy. I’m not so afraid of that. But it is exciting. Something new is coming. As a footballer I know what I have, what I get and how the year is divided. It’s very clear and bright. That’s going to change. Somewhere also nice, new things are coming my way. Tension is a big word. I am also especially happy that I have more time for my family.”
How much time does this need to give it a place?
“I can already place it reasonably well, but the realization that you are no longer a footballer will take a while. People who retire don’t immediately feel that way either. But when the boys start again later and I’m at home or on vacation, it will feel strange.”
Your decision took a long time to come, until about four weeks ago. Did you hesitate until the last moment?
“Yes, I doubted for a long time. Because I’ve been in good shape the last few months. Before that it went up and down. I’ve been injured more times than I’d like. As long as I can be of value to the club and fit myself into that role, I wanted to continue. The spare roll I had this year was also new to me, but I was happy to be the first substitute. But if that also decreases, it will be more difficult for me to enjoy it. Professional football is a wonderful profession, but it is also tough. You have to do a lot for it. I do that with all my love, but if what you get in return becomes less and less, it is less and less balanced.”
There are also clubs in the Netherlands where you could have been of value as a basic player. Has that ever crossed your mind?
“I haven’t thought about that. Although, I say no, but of course I thought about that one percent. It has not been discussed. That’s because I haven’t been fit enough for the last two years. That is the contradiction of this story. A week before I announced to the group that I would stop, the physical trainer came to me. He didn’t know then that I was going to stop. He said: ‘Wout, you have never been so fit in the last year and a half. Keep it up.’ Then I thought: nice story, but I’m going to tell you next week that I’m going to stop. That sometimes makes it a bit double, but I am convinced that this is the right choice.”
And now? What role do you see for yourself now?
“I would prefer to be on the technical side of football. That seems to me the most interesting and fun. I would like to finish in that capacity, but that is allowed at a steady pace.”
Brama sees a role for himself as an analyst at ESPN.
You can’t imagine that you won’t be involved in the club at all in the future, can you?
“Ha ha, not really. We’ve had conversations about that. The intention is to discover that. I’m not going to say that from next week I will be in the office for sixty hours a week. We’re not going to do that. We have to look at it calmly.”
Cristian Willaert saw in you a good analyst, he said at ESPN.
“I have thought about it and they have sometimes asked informally. Maybe I’ll do that. I like talking about football and watching football. I think I have an opinion on that too. Maybe I like that, maybe not. Who knows. Arnold is gone of course, they are looking for another Tukker, haha. They can always call.”