This week’s guest on Udinese Tonight was Jurgen Ekkelenkamp, who spoke about his position, his early days at Ajax, his life in Udine and Udinese’s goals for the remainder of the season.
“I'm happy about the win on Saturday,” Ekkelenkamp began, having been deployed by Kostas Runjaic in the unfamiliar role of left winger. “I just love playing football in general (laughs), I prefer playing centrally, but if the coach asks me to play out wide, I'll do it. I played in defence until I was 17 and then became a midfielder.”
Ekkelenkamp arrived in Udine during the summer transfer window: “Everything happened very quickly. Within two weeks, I was here in Udine. I immediately said yes when I was given the chance to join the club.” Having already played an important role for Runjaic, Jurgen is determined to contribute even more: “Now I want to be even more important to the team by scoring goals, as I have in the past.”
Despite only being in Udine for a few months, the Dutchman has already settled in. “I like Udine. It’s a small city, everything is close and the people are kind. I especially love going up to the Castle of Udine. The view is beautiful.”
Ekkelenkamp was the first player born in the 2000s to make his debut for Ajax: “It was a source of pride for me to wear the Ajax shirt and make my debut so young. Ajax is the biggest club in the Netherlands, the one I always wanted to play for and that I support.” He also played in the Champions League with the Dutch giants, making his debut against Cristiano Ronaldo’s Juventus: “It was an amazing match in the quarter-finals.” Jurgen won several trophies with Ajax: “I won a lot there, but also with Antwerp. I’m very proud of my achievements.”
Dutch and Italian football have clear differences: “In the Netherlands, we train with the ball from a young age and the league is more technical. Serie A, on the other hand, is more physical, with many challenges.” One of Ekkelenkamp’s idols played in both leagues: “Wesley Sneijder. But I also really liked Rafael van der Vaart, and as for the Italians, [Francesco] Totti.”
Jurgen now lives in Udine with his girlfriend. “Her name is Amira, we've been together since we were 14. We went to school together and she likes Udine too. We enjoy walking around the city and going up to the Castle. I do some cooking at home, but she’s better at it.”
Finally, as for what the player feels Udinese should aim for in the second half of the season, he said, “Our goal is to finish as high as possible. Let’s say tenth place or higher.”