Joel Asoro, 24, emerged as a huge talent at Sunderland, making his Premier League debut as a 17-year-old in 2016. After a couple of years in the British Isles at Sunderland and at Swansea, with loans to Groningen and Genoa, he returned home to Sweden plays in Djurgården IF before 2021, and was subsequently a strong contributor to the Stockholm team’s success with, among other things, playoffs in the Europa Conference League.
But since last summer, Asoro is playing again on foreign soil, and this time in France.
The 24-year-old signed a four-year contract with Metz, and is so far recorded for two goals and two assists in 19 games, nine of which have been starts for the French club.
Asoro is enjoying his life in France, but would have liked to start even more games and score more points.
– We live well, it’s great and quite quiet. Since then, things have gone a little less well for the club. It started well for me, but then there wasn’t much playing time during the winter, and now I had to start in the last game, so it’s been a bit tough, he says to Fotbollskanalen.
– If you look at the first three months, I did great considering the circumstances, when I came here from the Allsvenskan. Since then, I haven’t earned much, as I haven’t played and been able to meet the requirements I want to meet. I’m not giving up, although it would have been more fun to play more. Sometimes you get to see the bigger picture, and it’s not just me who decides. It is important to train as hard and as much as you can, then you will see if you start, he continues.
How do you think Ligue 1 is, which is known as a physical league?
– It’s a very physical league, a bit like the Championship, but I like the league. You become like a physical monster and run a lot. It is instructive.
Last year he also got to start against Kylian Mbappé’s Paris Saint-Germain at the Parc des Prince, and believes that it was an experience, even if it was a heavy loss.
– We (Asoro and Mbappé) went out together when the match started, so to go past him was big, and you got more motivation. You want to go even higher and continue. It was a good match and fun to see that level. I was excited, he says.
But at the same time, things have been a little more difficult for Asoro’s team during the season.
Metz started well, during Asoro’s first time in the team, but have recently had a tough time with nine losses in the last ten league games and are now second jumbo in Ligue 1.
– It’s about us having to win the next few games to feel that we can do this. We have to win on Sunday (against Nantes away) and I think we can do it. Sometimes we take the lead and hold it for a while, but then we concede a goal. We have to score the second goal to change the game.
With the table position, there is pressure on the club, which has led to journalists asking questions about the future of coach Laszlo Bölöni. After the latest loss against Lyon, French media have reported that Bölöni got annoyed with a Canal+ journalist, who asked if Bölöni’s job is in danger. Bölöni then first responded that it was a “trial action” from the journalist, and left the interview, before he came back and said again that it was a “trial action” regarding that he would answer “when he will be fired”. He also thought the journalist laughed and said: “You deserve a slap”. Then he left again.
Asoro thinks that, despite the position in the table, the atmosphere is good in the dressing room.
– The atmosphere is still quite good, but you want to win matches. We haven’t dragged each other down in any way, but you want to win, so we have to change the mentality and get back a winning feeling, which we had at the beginning of the season, when we were sixth. It is not impossible for us to start winning.
Even though it has been a bit more difficult lately, Asoro enjoys playing in France. He was enticed to go to Metz when it appeared as an option for him.
– They were interested at the same time as Bordeaux last season, so it was one or the other. Then Metz went up and then I had to think about where I wanted to go. There have been some interested clubs, and this club has wanted me since last year, so there has been contact.
A few weeks after the transfer, coach Laszlo Bölöni also stated that he had consulted former Swedish national team player Kim Källström, who also has a background in Rennes and in Lyon in France, regarding Asoro’s qualities. However, Asoro has not spoken to Källström himself.
– No, we haven’t spoken, but it was good that the coach called him, so they were convinced of a purchase. Kim did a good job there, he says.
Prior to the move to Metz, Turkish Caykur Rizespor was also on the news at the same time. Asoro stated then and there that he did not want to go to the Süper Lig, and now says that he even missed a call from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The president, who has a good eye for Rizespor, grew up in Rize, where the club is based, while his family also comes from the city.
– They wanted to call me down there, and maybe offer me things, I don’t know. He wanted to talk to me, but I said no. I thought mostly about football, as I want to go higher and further. This was an easier path to take, says Asoro.
So you never talked?
– No, he called me, but I didn’t answer. I spoke to the coach and the sports director, who said he wanted to talk and that I would respond.
Surely not everyone missed a call from Erdogan?
– No, I know, in another life I might have said yes, but it didn’t suit me. It must be great down there, but it didn’t suit me at the moment.
Asoro is now looking forward to contributing to Metz’s rise in the table, and hopes for three points and goals in the future. More than that, he does not currently think about his future.
– I see it as positive. I want to try to help the team and get points. Then we’ll see what happens. I’ve received perfectly fine feedback, but we’ll see how it goes.
Will you stay – if you were to leave?
– You can take that when the season is “done”. Then you know what the plans are.
In the future, he is also open to returning to Djurgården.
– You can say that, but I don’t know when. It’s a club that helped me get back on my feet, so it’s clear that I can imagine coming back.
When Fotbollskanalen talks to Asoro, Jon Dahl Tomasson has also just held his first press conference as the new national team captain for the Swedish national team. Asoro is positive about the Dane.
– It will be interesting, and fun to watch. If you do well enough, you might be selected, but that remains to be seen. It’s all about being in shape. Then you are good enough to play.
What do you feel you have in you going forward?
– I feel that I could be the Joel that many know I can be, and it is important to get that out. I haven’t really found myself, but if I play like I did at the beginning of the season, I will definitely find my form.
2024-03-02 07:30:00
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