The Return 2013

I’ve been back in Sweden for a month, and can’t even describe how nice it has been to be back at work. Especially when I got the news that I was cleared for contact 2 months ahead of schedule!

The 4 months I was able to spend at home were incredible. Having so much time with my friends and family was a nice change after spending so much time abroad. However, as my recovery progressed and I was able to do more soccer related activities, it got harder to enjoy my time at home and feel like I was doing my job as well. Especially since my coach had asked me to serve as the captain for the upcoming season at the end of January. Trying to spend time with friends and family while also making sure that I was staying on top of my fitness and rehab were frequently pulling me in different directions. So it has been nice to have my life simplified again even if it meant taking me away from family and friends.

However, not all of my friends were left back in Chicago!

Having Charlie Campbell, who has been one of my closest friends for many years, here with me this year has been awesome. I have been able to ease his transition into life over here in Sweden and having him here has made it easy for me to resume my life. He was able to find an apartment in downtown Gothenburg, which is both a good and bad thing, as we are not able to spend a ton of time together outside of practice. But it gives me the opportunity to make it to the city once a week to hang out with him and explore Gothenburg more than I was able to last year. We have been able to find a lot of cool café’s and restaurants that will need to be re-visited as the weather improves!

With the weather being so cold in this part of the world the team decided to send us on a preseason trip to Turkey. We were in Antalya on an all-inclusive resort for 6 days and it was an incredible experience. I only wish that I had been closer to Istanbul! However, the bazaar that I was able to visit was a really unique experience and I am glad I was able to get a taste of what Turkey has to offer.

After our brief visit to a tropical climate we were thrust back into our preparations for our opening match of the season. We met Hammarby, who are tipped to win the league this year, at home. Due to the rough weather we had to play the match at a neutral location, 2 hours south, but earned a 0-0 draw. It was a result that we were very happy to claim despite having the better chances to score.

This past weekend was a different story. We traveled south to meet Falkenbergs FF in their home-opener in a contest that ended up being more of a fight than a soccer match. We were unable to cope with the horrendous conditions of the game and lost 2-1. On the bright side I did record my first league goal for Ljungskile in the match on a penalty kick. Here’s a link to watch the goal. We are hoping to get back on track this Sunday when we meet Assyriska at home.

Grandma Hopkins I know that you will be able to recover quicker than the doctor’s think! Hope your recovery is going well!

Thinking of everyone at home and in Boston. Proud to be an American!