Wabash Soccer Experience in Germany
Coach Giannini and Coach O-
Classes officially start this week, although mine don't start until tomorrow. It's kind of weird, as the Wabash semester is starting to end, mine is just beginning. I have a pretty nice schedule- classes Tuesday through Thursday with Friday through Monday off. I can't complain. I'm living in the Altstadt of Tübingen, which means that everything is within walking distance from me. I get disappointed when I have to ride the bus. Coach O- the Neckarmüller is about a 2 minute walk from where I am living. I've been there a couple times. I spent the last week with a family that I lived with 4 years ago when I came. They're very hospitable.
On Friday I went to my first Bundesliga game ever- Borussia Mönchengladbach (the team Kasey Keller plays for) vs. Hamburger SV. It was one of the most amazing things I've seen. Mönchengladbach is dead last in the Bundesliga table, they're fighting against relegation into the second league, yet the entire stadium was full- some 54,000 seats. Not only that, but the crowd was on their feet the whole game, singing, waving flags, etc. It's not something you get to experience every day. I also was lucky enough to be in the Stehplatz, the standing part of the stadium. That's where the best fans are- the one's who probably can't afford to be there, but are there anyway, the ones who have their flags up the whole time, and the fans who are first to arrive and leave the stadium. It's also where the majority of the beer drinking takes place. Simply stated, it was a great atmosphere.
I also had a chance to train with my host-brother's soccer team. It was just a light training, though, we just scrimmaged. They weren't that great, but it was fun, and I always enjoy seeing the looks on faces when they find out I'm an American who can play and enjoys playing their game. That will probably never get old. Other than that I’ve been playing 2-3 times a week. I would say I over-enjoyed the German beer for about the first month and a half, but I have that out of my system now, and I'm ready to start preparing for the next season. I hope you guys have a good summer, and that the camp goes well. I'll see you in August.
Cheers,
Matt Potasnik ‘08
