Owen Otasowie’s early time with Belgian side Club Brugge has been frustrating for the young midfielder and he will reportedly head back to England for a one-week break from action.
Otasowie has been given a short mental break by the club to return to England with hopes of sparking the midfielder’s future in Belgium, HLN reportedly Tuesday. The 20-year-old made a permanent transfer to Club Brugge from English Premier League side Wolverhampton Wanderers this summer, but has found it tough to adjust to life in a new country, according to the report.
Otasowie has yet to make his competitive debut for Club Brugge since his transfer from Wolves, featuring only in preseason friendlies. He has spent time with the club’s reserve team, but is still hoping to be a part of Philippe Clement’s side moving forward.
The New York native made 34 combined appearances between Wolves’ Under-23 and Under-18 teams before earning more chances with the first team. Otasowie totaled seven appearances under then-manager Nuno Espírito Santo, featuring in the UEFA Europa League and the Premier League.
Club Brugge paid roughly €4 million for his services this summer, making Otasowie the latest American to make the move to the Belgian Pro League.
Otasowie made his senior debut for the U.S. men’s national team in November 2020, but since has not featured at any level for his native country.
Club Brugge faces off with Manchester City on Wednesday on Matchday 4 of the UEFA Champions League competition. The club sits second in the Pro League standings, two points behind Union Saint-Gilloise for the top spot.
I would be more inclined to think that it is a 20 year-old in a country where he does not speak the language and has not friends other than teammates. I suspect that what I will call loneliness is to blame rather than any bad attitude or immaturity.
A sense of loneliness can lead to lots of behavioral symptoms, not all of them are very attractive, but the sense of sadness that can ensue can be debilitating. I hope his brief time back in England among friends will help him.
It’s a snob thing to assume that any negative interaction with a team comes down to your quality and/or lack of gumption, and not homesickness, cultural awkwardness, getting crossways with a jerk coach, or how you might fit a particular system. They then don’t apply their own metric to people like Steffen, who in that Panama game looked as rusty as they say Horvath did in one club game they harp on forever. It relates, IMO, to their UCL fanboy thing and the belief that club status is a perfect sorting mechanism and if you don’t work out at a destination it’s your fault and reflects your downward sorting. They were the same people fanboying Otasowie for being at Wolves.
This kid better grow up quick or he’ll mess up a once promising career! It doesn’t take much effort to show up for work everyday with a positive attitude, even if you are going through something(not saying that he is btw)!
I feel like that’s reading a lot into this unless you’re privy to information that wasn’t presented in the article. I’ve wondered myself why he seemed to be making such a difficult transition to Belgium but I’ve seen no suggestions anywhere that his challenges are related to immaturity or a bad attitude. I’m inclined to give the kid the benefit of the doubt. Have you ever moved to a new country? It can be tough. I hope he’s eventually able to settle in at the club and on the pitch.