When we see Dominik Szoboszlai consistently deliver dazzling performances in his first six months at Liverpool, it’s tempting to think he’s adjusting to life on Merseyside like a duck to water.
However, we only see what he performs on the pitch for a few hours each week, rather than the reality of a young guy adjusting to a new life in a foreign nation following a high-profile career shift.
In an open interview with journalist Mark Soos for Fodball, the 23-year-old discussed his life outside of sport.
In one comment translated by Bence Bocsak on X, Szoboszlai admits to feeling ‘lonely’ throughout his time in England thus far.
The Liverpool player admitted, “I’d be lying if I claimed I didn’t feel lonely occasionally. There are days when I just sit on the couch, pondering what to do. Then I turn on a movie and attempt to fall asleep, praying for tomorrow.”
It’s tempting to believe that elite football players are just Teflon-like commodities who make so much money that they should be satisfied with living their dreams.
But the football players we love every week are real people like us, with ups and downs in their personal lives that may be disguised beneath their confident, joyful public personas.
It should be noted that Szoboszlai is only 23 years old and is still adjusting to life in England, which includes a cultural and linguistic shift (though his English is excellent), as well as the pressure of repaying the £60 million fee paid for him by one of the world’s biggest clubs.
As much as we enjoy watching him perform wonders on the pitch, it is even more vital that he is happy and healthy in his everyday life on Merseyside.
He deserves a lot of respect for having the courage to confess his sentiments of fragility and loneliness off the field, but he couldn’t have asked for a greater manager than Jurgen Klopp to address those concerns with care and compassion.
We hope Szoboszlai will be able to rely on a reliable support network to get him through the tough times away from Anfield.
