Elrio van Heerden made the brave decision to leave it all behind at age 18, immediately after high school, to pursue what turned out to be a fairly successful career abroad. Soccer Laduma got in touch with the former Bafana Bafana winger to speak about his nine years spent in Europe.
Clubs played for
I played at Copenhagen in Denmark and I also played for Club Brugge, as well as Westerlo (both in Belgium). I was in Turkey at Sivasspor and I was at Blackburn Rovers in England.
How the deal happened
They (FC Copenhagen) had the soccer schools in PE that was linked to the club. That's where I was scouted because the head coach and technical director were from Denmark. We had a link where Copenhagen would come training camps with (Sibusiso) Zuma at the time. Every year we were assessed and I was one of the players who was recommended. I was scouted to go train with the team and I joined the team. I moved to Club Brugge from Copenhagen and I was there for about three-and-a-half years. I think I was scouted by Blackburn from AFCON (Africa Cup of Nations) and if a team from England contacts you, then you are not going to say no. Everyone wants to go play in England. It was a big opportunity. At Blackburn, I did not play so much in the first six months and I had to make a decision that I want to move because it was the time of the World Cup and, at that time, you needed to be active. If you were not active, the chances of you being selected were going to be tough. I played a cup game when I played against Chelsea. I came on and, if I am correct, it was the League Cup (now Carabao Cup). And then with Muhsin (Ertugral) being at Sivasspor, he decided that I should go on loan for six months so that I could increase my chances of being part of the World Cup squad.
My first day in Europe
It was a bit of an adjustment. It was not the first time I saw snow, but it was so cold. Scandinavian winter is super cold. It's tougher than the other ones in Europe, so it was a big adjustment for me. Being a boy who was 18 and being away from home was tough, but if you want to become a footballer, that's the sacrifices you need to make. When I left, I had just passed matric. I did not even have the time to be at home or study. I went straight to playing football (in Europe), which was a dream come true. It was a big adjustment, but it was something I was prepared to take on.
My debut
I remember my debut. I scored a goal that actually took us through to win the championship. That's something I can never forget. It was against a team call Aalborg. I came on as a substitute and I scored and we actually drew that game. It gave us an advantage to win the last game and then win the championship.
Missing out on the World Cup
Unfortunately, a month or two after joining Sivasspor, Muhsin resigned, so the foreign players were pushed aside. So it was disappointing to miss out on the World Cup. But as a professional you have to accept that. It's the biggest disappointment, but it comes with football. There were other challenges that I had to face to prolong my stay in Europe. So, I had to keep my head up and keep working.
Best player I played with
Benni (McCarthy) was with me at Blackburn. When you come to the national team, you see someone as a striker. You see that he is good, but once you train with him everyday, that's when you realise how good he is. He was pure quality and you could see why he was a big name.
Best player I played against
When I was in the national team, we played against Germany and they had (Michael) Ballack. We played against Spain during the (FIFA) Confederations Cup and they had (Sergio) Busquets and all those guys. When you are on the field, you get to see how good these guys really are.
Difference between European and SA football
I think the football intelligence (in Europe) was higher and there was a big gap with the technical part of the game.
Any current PSL players who can play in Europe?
I don't follow every game, but the boy from Sundowns - Cassius Mailula - is good. I've seen him. I've also watched the boy at Maritzburg United, Rowan Human. He was in Europe and he came back. You can see that there are good prospects there. I think coaches are contributing more to the development of the players, so we are getting there to close the gap.
