Not that many Swiss have a connection with PSV. Yet one of them paid a visit Tuesday afternoon to the hotel where the club's selection is staying these days for the encounter with FC Basel. Former striker Johan Vonlanthen does not appear to have forgotten Dutch. "I still speak it a little bit. Especially when it goes very slowly."
Impression
The now 33-year-old Vonlanthen played for PSV between 2003 and 2006. He came to Eindhoven as a great promise, but never managed to break through in a squad that included Mark van Bommel. His counter as a PSV player stopped at 29 games and six goals, but his time in Eindhoven has impressed. Effortlessly he lists the players he played with. "Lee, Park, Beasley, Farfan, Vogel, De Jong, Bouma, Cocu, Kezman, Rommedahl. Van Bommel of course." For a moment it falls silent. "Aah I'm forgetting the most important one," he then says. "Arjen Robben."
The former striker follows PSV closely. On his social media, he regularly shows his fondness for PSV. "Through Instagram I stay up to date. Despite the fact that these were not the best years of my career, I wouldn't have wanted to miss it. I chose PSV very consciously at the time and the reason I didn't break through lies mainly with myself. I made mistakes myself and had no people around me who could save me from it," Vonlanthen said.
Lessons
"In the end, it helped me become a better person. It was a very educational, beautiful time. The lessons I learned there myself, I now try to pass on to the players I now coach."
In fact, these days Vonlanthen is a case manager and one of his players from his stable is Noah Okafor, player of FC Basel. "I mentor some guys I played football with. The best thing to do is to stay involved in football. You can do that this way."
Resilience
On his personal Instagram page, Vonlanthen briefly wished his player luck for tonight's match, but he is not certain that the team from his home country will beat PSV. "I found it surprising that Basel scored twice in Eindhoven, despite the fact that they played so defensively. But that match also showed that PSV is beyond Basel in terms of mentality and resilience.
And according to the Swiss, that is also because of his former teammate Mark van Bommel. "Mark is top. I experienced him as a leader in the locker room and in that role he came across very naturally. He has had a fantastic career as a player and he really owes that entirely to himself. I hope he will also grow to the top as a trainer. I really wish him that too."