NAC Breda have been average, reaching the highs and lows of Dutch football. However, a player-loan partnership with the Premier League champions, Manchester City could reshape the club’s destiny.
On the black mirror of a television screen resides the promise of a blank slate. Thousands of miniscule pixels ready to light up according to a coded program, ready to inject life into a seemingly barren wasteland of a TV screen. As I started up EA Sport’s FIFA 14 nearly five years ago, a younger Lionel Messi greeted me, draped in Barcelona’s old Qatar-sponsored kit. This was me in the beginning stages of my football fandom. But the aggressive, flashy playing style of the Ultimate Team game mode did not attract me. Instead, it was Career Mode: the ability to build a team mirroring real life from the ground up, out of little to nothing.
To loan or not to loan
In the 2014 edition of one of the world’s most popular sports games, the money-laden Manchester City were a phenomenally built team in the 2014 edition of one of the most popular sports games. Sergio Agüero, David Silva, and Yaya Touré headlined the squad, but an emerging class of multi-national youngsters also featured. The physically gifted John Guidetti was touted to possibly replace Zlatan Ibrahimović in the Swedish national team. A 17-year-old Rony Lopes brought a Portuguese flair to the midfield of City’s youth squad. Karim Rekik was brought forth as the next great Dutch defender. I relished the opportunity to weave these youngsters into my fictitious squad. However, none of these players ever had a shot at winning a first-team spot at the Etihad in real life.