By Alex Whiteman
alex@canucks-abroad.com

Copyright Mountain High Maps - Modified by Kerry Kubilius

Eastern Europe - The Forgotten land of Canucks Abroad

Following a Canuck Abroad into Eastern Europe (EE) is one of the reasons why the Google translator exists. That’s life for those of us trying to keep up with our trailblazing Canucks braving the unheralded region of EE to make a career in soccer work out. It would be remiss to be all gloom and doom however, as EE has of late become a more popular place for Canucks abroad. The players range from the likes of CMNT starters Lars Hirschfeld and Andre Hainault to lesser known young Canadians such as Adrian-Russel Kekec and Fabian Knezevic . Canucks Abroad is committed to giving you, the reader, the most up to date information on our players that Google translator can provide! [Though CA is working on getting some actual translators].

So why are there so many Canucks in Eastern Europe? Lars Hirschfeld was transferred to CFR Cluj; imagine a team actually paid a sizeable transfer fee for a Canadian! And that team is atop the Romanian League and looking for Champions League football. Andre Hainault was able to command a starting place at Siad Most early in his career, which lead to a transfer to a Champions League team and perhaps the biggest team in the Czech Republic, Sparta Prague. Dave Simpson is looking to overcome his past injury problems to fight for a first XI place at Hainault’s former club Siad Most. The others by and large are younger players looking to make an impact on a European team; It is common for these players to have ethnic ties to their regions such as Fabian Knezevic Jr in Croatia or Vladimir Vukovic in Bosnia. Quite simply it may be easier to get noticed playing in Europe than it would be playing in the USL for the Whitecaps or the Impact.

As Canadian soccer fans we tend to see Eastern Europe as something of a backwater in world soccer, but in truth the level of play is surprisingly good. While one will never compare the Hungarian league to the Serie A or La Liga there are some relatively big teams located in the region, and the standard of play, while not breathtaking, is comparable to MLS in many cases. Some of the top teams, like Steaua Bucharest, Slavia Prague, Galatasaray, Red Star Belgrade, Croatia Zagreb and a host of quality Russian team are formidable forces in the UEFA Cup and Champion’s League and should command our utmost respect. Eastern Europe has also become a springboard in recent years, especially to places like Germany. There are more scouts looking at the region which is a hotbed of some of the biggest talents in the world such as Luca Modric for one. It is likely that in the next few years that we will see Canadians like Andre Hainault move to a larger club in Germany or France and it is a privilege for Canucks Abroad to follow their careers as they do so.

In the coming weeks, we will be updating the player profiles on each of the ten players under in Eastern Europe, so you no longer have to rely on the dubious CSA profiles. We will provide updates on these players wherever and whenever they play. CA will be working on obtaining interviews with these players to provide the reader with the best coverage of these unheralded Canadians possible.

If you know any players in addition to the ones listed below, please email alex@canucks-abroad.com with information.

Current Players in Eastern Europe

Bosnia & Herzegovinia
Vladimir Vukovic - FK Laktasi (Bosnia Herzegovina Premier League) (1)

Croatia
Fabian Knezevic Jr. - Kamen Ingrad (Croatian 1.HNL Ozujsko) (1) Youth

Czeceh Republic
Andre Hainault - AC Sparta Praha(Czechia Gambrinus Liga) (1)
Dave Simpson - FK Siad Most (Czechia Gambrinus Liga) (1)

Hungary
Wojtek (Wojciech) Zarzycki - Ferencvaros (NB II Nyugat) (2)
Desmond Tachie - Kaposvolgye (NB II Nyugat) (2)

Poland
Dawid Kwiek - Wisla Krakow II (Polish 3 Liga) (3)

Serbia
Bobby Kajgo - FK Hajduk Beograd (Prva Liga Telekom Srbija) (2)

Slovenia
Adrian-Russel Kekec - NK Livar (Slovenian First Division) (1)