For the average person, moving house is a big deal. A major life event.
Now imagine you’re moving country and being thrust into the spotlight. That is the life of a footballer that perhaps doesn’t get discussed enough. Football is a results business, driven by the demand for instant success.
When it comes to foreign imports, their expectations aren’t relaxed. Some thrive in that atmosphere and even those that take a bit of time concede that is part and parcel of the industry they sign up for.
Sondre Tronstad has taken time to settle. After starting the opening Championship match against West Brom, it’s been a two-month break before he got the nod against Queens Park Rangers.
Although he spent a few years in England as a teenager, it’s been a big life change, even if he’s one of the more senior members of the dressing room at 28. He now has a fiancée to consider and a small child, aged one.
Tomasson has drip-fed him into the Blackburn Rovers team but after getting his feet under the table, Tronstad is ready to make an impression.
“I think most of the people don’t think about that, it’s about what is on the pitch,” he told The Lancashire Telegraph. “That’s how it is, to be in football, you have to be able to deal with this.
“It’s a different country, you try to play as good as possible straight away but it can take a bit longer. I am an impatient guy and I came here to go straight into the team.
“You try to get to know everyone really quickly and the league. Sometimes, you have to be realistic and appreciate everything around it.
“There are a lot of things when you think about it now. I understand it can take a bit of time.”
Despite being out of the team, and even out of the squad on two occasions, constant communication between the head coach and player has been key. Tronstad dropped down to the 21s whilst the first team played against Sunderland, with Tomasson looking to see an adjustment to the more frenetic style of football England offers.
As Tronstad states himself, no player wants to be out of the side. But reflecting with a level head on his opening two months at the club, he might even concede it was necessary.
“That’s important, there are a lot of managers who maybe don’t say a lot to you,” Tronstad said on his relationship with Tomasson. “They can treat you like you’re in a different country when you’re not in the team.
“He has talked to me about what he needs, what he wants to see. He’s been very clear, I’ve tried to work on it in training and adapt.
“When you are a new player, it can take time to get in the team. It’s a new team, a new style of play, a new country. It can take time.
“It’s important to be playing games, you do need some to get going. I got 90 minutes against Cardiff, minutes at Coventry and QPR. I can build on that and I want to continue to improve on that and work hard on what the manager wants me to.”
It would be easy to assume that an experienced player, aged 28, would be comfortable moving seamlessly from the top flight of the Netherlands to England’s second tier. But football is far more nuanced than that.
The speed and style of the matches are entirely different. The Championship is far more transitional, making decision-making and physical attributes even more important.
