Meet the Irishman playing at the Club World Cup against Bayern, Benfica and Boca
Dylan Connolly knows he's not supposed to have days like these, not as an amateur footballer who has to shoehorn training sessions into his busy working life. But sometimes you just strike it lucky and today the Celbridge lad has arrived in America to take on some of the world's biggest teams in the FIFA Club World Cup.
From Celbridge in Co Kildare, the 25-year-old will be the sole Irish competitor in the expanded tournament that now incorporates 32-teams. He plays for New Zealand's most successful club, Auckland City, and the amateur side have been drawn in the same group as Bayern Munich, Boca Juniors and Benfica.
Champions League winners PSG, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Manchester City, Chelsea, Juventus and Porto are among the other heavyweight clubs involved in the tournament.
'It's absolutely bonkers, and still hard to believe,' Connolly told Mirror Sport as he ramps up preparations for Auckland's opener against Bayern Munich on June 15.
The Bundesliga champions are bringing their catalogue of stars to America and right-back Connolly will be part of a defence tasked with keeping Harry Kane quiet.
'It's one of those things that as you're saying it now, it still doesn't sound real,' said Connolly when asked about trying to do a job on the England international.
Veteran striker Edinson Cavani - once of Manchester United - is still punishing defences for Boca Juniors, the giants of Argentina and Diego Maradona's old club. And it won't be lost on Connolly that Greece international Vangelis Pavlidis led the way for Benfica this season after smashing 19 league goals in 34 games in Portugal's top flight.
Connolly said: 'Don't get me wrong, we're going to try our best as we've prepared so well and put so much into it. We want to give the best account of ourselves as possible. But we also have to consider that these are some of the very best players in world football. The experience and opportunity to share a field with them is every amateur footballer's dream.
'You're watching their games on TV at the weekend going 'wow, I could be on the pitch with them in a few weeks'. Not many amateur players get to say that, especially in a competitive game that both sides are going to take seriously. That makes it even more special. It's not a charity game or a friendly match, it's a big game in a big competition. '
Last year, Mirror Sport caught up with Connolly when he was playing in the Oceania Champions League in Tonga, for a club based in the Cook Islands called Tupapa Maraerenga. In April of this year, he returned to the Oceania Champions League with his new club Auckland City and ended up winning it outright in the Solomon Islands.
Football has taken Connolly to some far flung destinations since leaving these shores, where he played U17 League of Ireland football for Shelbourne and Drogheda United. At senior level, he represented Lucan United in the Leinster Senior League and his younger brother, Aaron Connolly, is one of Athlone Town's key players.
From Ireland to tournaments in Spain, and New Zealand via the Cook Islands and Tonga, Connolly is now in America for games in Cincinnati, Orlando and Nashville. And in September, it looks like he will be off to Africa to play in a FIFA Intercontinental Cup qualifier as the African Champions League winners are due to play Auckland City.
'It's unbelievable but as an amateur footballer you always have that wish growing up as a kid that you will play in something like this,' he said of the Club World Cup. 'I turned 25 last week and you think that opportunity is over and that you've missed the boat on the professional scene. So to have something like this, while still being an amateur, is just incredible and scarcely believable.
'I just want to contribute to the team, give it a go and make it something to remember. If you could go back a few years when I decided to move to New Zealand and told me this would happen in a couple of years, I'd have said you were crazy. This doesn't happen to people, so I know it's a once in a lifetime opportunity.'
The entire New Zealand league is amateur but as they settle into their Tennessee base, Auckland City will shed that mindset and adopt the most professional of approaches. They have two warm-up matches pencilled in and will then fly to and from their group games against Bayern Munich in Cincinnati (June 15), Benfica in Orlando (June 20) and Boca in Nashville (JUne 24).
Connolly admits it's a world removed from the day-to-day grind of amateur football in New Zealand's top flight, where you juggle work demands with the beautiful game. What's certain is that the galaxy of stars on display at Bayern Munich, Benfica and Boca Juniors didn't have to book time off work to play in this Club World Cup.
That is their job and Connolly said: 'I'm a physiotherapist and I work as a contractor in a sports clinic. I also work as a football coach with a private academy. That's almost turning into another full-time job at the minute. A lot of my life is taken over by football and I'm either training, coaching or doing physio with athletes. It's really busy and I've tried to cut down on work this year because of football but it's difficult as you have to earn a living.'
Connolly continued: 'All of our players are in different positions, depending on the jobs they have. I'm lucky that I work for myself as a contractor. I can take time off and with the football coaching we have other coaches that can come in and I can oversee that from abroad.
'Some of the lads are in university and have had to get special exemptions from exams to travel to America. Other lads working in jobs are taking annual leave and unpaid leave which is crazy as I doubt too many players are asking for time off work to go to the Club World Cup.
'But if you ask any other amateur footballer in the world if they would do it, of course they would. We're definitely not complaining but it's just a different world to what the professional players are facing. The best thing about the sport is that anything can happen and you just have to go out there with that attitude. On the day, it will be hard to avoid the big names but we'll be going out to follow a game plan, give it 100% and whatever happens, happens.'
And Connolly added: 'We'll get what we deserve to get, but for the next couple of weeks it's about getting the head down and trying to give the best account of ourselves. Will an amateur team ever play in this competition again? I'm not sure, so we have to go and grab it, enjoy it and live the experience.'
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