Life as a Villarreal CF intern: Part 2
The last six months as an intern at Villarreal CF have been incredible, full of unforgettable experiences all whilst learning and developing along the way. Each week was different, whether that’s carrying out a new task, facing a new challenge, or being presented with a new opportunity.
Throughout the season I have been coaching the Pre-Benjamín B (U7) team with Sergi Campos and Bea Prades. It has been a privilege to work alongside and learn from these two very knowledgeable individuals with an extensive history at the club. This has been my first experience as a coach where, at first, I significantly felt out of my comfort zone and I didn’t immerse myself straight into the role. However, that language barrier I was faced with at the start has inevitably been broken. My internship has allowed me to develop a bank of Spanish football vocabulary and coaching terms, and over time I have become accustomed to set words and phrases which now come naturally when on the pitch. As this vocabulary developed, I was able to involve myself in the sessions more to the point where I have now experienced being the coach at the forefront of the session, taking the lead and explaining activities to the team as a whole. Another challenge I encountered was working amongst the Valencian language since it’s so widely spoken within the club. I found myself learning to differentiate between Castilian Spanish and Valencian and therefore I gradually learnt various Valencian words and phrases.
Working within such a professional setup, learning how to coach in a different language and putting myself out of my comfort zone have all been key to both my personal and professional development. As mentioned in “Life as a Villarreal CF intern - Part 1”, it has been a goal of mine to combine my love of football coaching with Spanish, therefore I have been developing within an environment where I envisage myself long-term. I have also had the opportunity to improve my knowledge of coaching high-ability players in an academy, which is something I am yet to experience in the UK or USA.
One of the most unique experiences of working with the team was taking part in the official presentation of the Villarreal youth teams. All the players and their coaches paraded around the pitch at the Estadio de la Cerámica during half-time of the match against Celta Vigo. Stepping out onto the pitch in front of 20,000 fans and seeing everyone waving and with their cameras out was quite overwhelming, but it’ll be a key moment from my time as an intern which I won’t forget.
During my internship I was also involved in completing tasks for the International Department. Some of my main responsibilities included translating articles from Spanish to English for the Villarreal CF official website, tweeting for the official English Twitter account, and transcribing interviews which the department carried out. I also wrote a feature on Vicente Iborra. In addition to these tasks, I was given several opportunities to work in the press on matchdays which involved translating articles during the game. It was a fantastic opportunity to not only watch the game from a different perspective, and from one of the best seats in the stadium, but also see what work goes on behind the scenes.
Some additional perks of being involved in the club were having a stadium tour which included a visit to the home changing room, tunnel, club memorabilia, VIP seats and away stand, and a training ground tour with special access to the player residence building. Also, I would often attend the first team training sessions to watch the players in action. As a coach I really enjoyed getting an insight into the way their sessions are structured and the types of drills that are undertaken. Working in the academy meant I could compare the training carried out by the U7s right through to the first team. It was surprising to see how many similarities there are between the two, showing that the work done at the very youngest level in the club really does have a strong focus on preparing the players for the top level.
By waiting at the training ground after the sessions I was able to get a photo with each of the players and have them sign my flag. It’s an amazing feeling knowing that I’ve met each one of the Villarreal CF first team. They were so friendly and many of them were willing to stop for a chat before heading home. I even got to meet my favourite player, Vicente Iborra. I can vividly remember calling his name and the moment he walked over to me; I was speechless. He signed my flag and a poster of him, we got a photo together, and then he gave me his training shirt. I’m a big fan of his since I have a personal connection with several of the clubs he has played at, and so getting to meet him in person is undoubtedly the top moment of my internship.
My time at the club lead me to become an avid supporter of the first team, not only by acquiring a season ticket and attending homes matches, but also by travelling to their away games against Valencia, Real Sociedad, Atlético Madrid and Athletic Club. Each of these occasions allowed me to visit a new city as well as experience a match in some of the most spectacular stadiums in the country. I also got really engrossed in following Villarreal’s Copa del Rey journey which meant I travelled to see the team play away against Orihuela, Girona, Rayo Vallecano and Mirandés. Despite the result of the quarter-final tie, my highlight over the fourweeks was getting the full fan club experience by travelling with the Official Villarreal Supporters’ Club (La Agrupació de Penyes del Villarreal CF) on their organised coach trip to Miranda de Ebro. I built some great friendships and connections with the travelling fans where in the end they were treating me like one of their own.
This internship was a dream come true and I couldn’t have asked for more. I have to thank my supervisors, Thomas, Lucy, Brandon and Mar, for all their support and guidance along the way and providing me with so many unbelievable opportunities. I’ve come away from it having learnt so much about the club, developed many different skills, improved my Spanish proficiency in relation to football, and most importantly been given a great insight into a role where I hope to one day find myself.
