Hi all,
I took the time to translate Hemed's facebook post, which i find very inspiring and a bit unusual for an active footballer to share.
What do you think?
I took the time to translate Hemed's facebook post, which i find very inspiring and a bit unusual for an active footballer to share.
1:40 AM, England time, middle of the night, Brighton.
Many young players asks me "what is your secret?"
"What do you suggest me to do? Give me a tip! Tell me how you managed to get to the highest levels and stay there for so many years, comparing to many other players, sometimes more talented than you, who did not manage to succeed?
Tonight, just now at this time, I have this urge to write, a sense of commitment, commitment to any young or even older player, to understand what makes the difference, the difference between success and failure. What brought me here? What is keeping me here so many years and what differs me, perhaps, than many others?
Everyone sees and remembers the good forms and the highlights, the goals, assists, wins and celebrations. But what about the difficult times? Where nobody knows what I'm going through. Sleepless nights, insane mental pressure, angers and disappointments. Runnings in the middle of the night, gym training even though I feel like doing nothing, personal trainings even though my mind needs time to relax with the family. This is where, for me, an athlete is measured. The amount of times you fail, get up, and each time get up on your feet again and keep climbing to the highest top.
I've been there, many times. But always when I was there and felt at the lowest place there is, it took out the best of me. It lit up something new in me, pushed me harder to keep persisting, to invest, to improve and to go forward as much as possible, and most important, it reminded me each time that only I will decide where I belong to and how my career will look like.
After a season with one goal for Bnei Yehuda (does anyone remember?) they quickly decided that Tomer Hemed was a nice striker but still not good enough for the Israeli Premier League. So they said.
The next season I already scored 10 goals for Achi Nazareth, who was the weakest team in the league.
I believed in myself. In my way. I was hungry.
In Maccabi Haifa for half a season, Elisha Levi (the manager), thought I was not good enough and did not let me play. I thought different and only made sure to be ready to prove it whenever I get the chance. Since December, after another striker got injured and I got first-team for the first time, I did not leave the first-team and finished as Maccabi Haifa's top scorer. How did that season ended, you ask?! A green championship. I don't think anyone could believe it would happen, but in my head, I had no doubt and that's what helped me do it.
And from Haifa to where? Mallorca. La Liga. "Spanish premier league?!"
I have been exaggerating, according to most pundits in Israel, and I will return to Israel within a few months, according to them, but it turned out that they were wrong in a few years ... During that time I managed to get to be the Israeli player with the most goals in La Liga.
When Eli Gutman (Israel national team manager at the time) called me in his first squad selection, as the national team manager, he told me "I appreciate your way, but you're not my favourite type of striker". He wasn't sure how much I'd play for him. In my mind, I only saw how I was making him regret it and without him believing I would be his first-team striker, until only a super power would be able to remove me from there. Whoever will check will find out that this is exactly what happened.
The second season in Spain, with 11 goals (first season "only" 8) and I feel like in a dream, scoring against Casillas and Real Madrid, Sevilla, Valencia and Atletico Madrid, I still feel sorry that against Barca it didn't happen ...
Last round in the best career's season, and a serious injury. Achilles tendon tear, a very cruel injury to a footballer.
Seven months off the field and the team relegated. You can forget about all the proposals that were waiting around the corner: Newcastle, Sevilla, Everton and Stuttgart.
"Welcome back to Israel!" "After such injury, there is no way you will return to these levels," they hastened to decide ...
"It can not be", "It's not over", I convince myself. I dreamed of getting to the English Premier League too. "What are you insane? First you have to step on your leg", I say to myself. "Right, step by step".
"And then EPL!" We have a long way to go then.
Seven months of exhausting recovery in hard and intensive work, mentally and physically, but with one great faith all along the way that I will come back, big time, and make another dream come true. Another season in La Liga and 30 goals in two years in the Championship League in England did the trick.
Brighton in the first round in the Premier League season 2017/18, we are against Manchester City and you probably imagine who is the first-team striker for the seagulls. Yes, the hungry boy from Achi Nazareth. Round 6 and I'm already with two goals in the best league in the world. Another dream come true. I did it, it's real.
Remember what we talked about? Crises. So while I'm living the dream, playing against the biggest players in the world, without any prior warning came a suspension of three games and basically stopped (for a moment) everything. They claimed that I deliberately stepped on an opponent player during the game (of course it did not happen). And another player got my position in the first-team, the dynamic has changed, the manager has changed his mind. Since then and until now, things have not worked out, I played less, and even for the first time in my career I was left out of the squad. But, throughout this period, with all the difficulty, for a moment I'm not giving up, and never thought it's time to choose the easy way.
Now I am back in a period of uncertainty, and yet, more prepared than ever for the next challenge, the next jump forward and to continue my story, which will allow another child or boy, who dreams of success, to understand that even in worse times, one must not give up and deal with the situation. Always remember that everything depends on yourself, your attitude and your faith. The disappointments and failures are part of the success. Every day must be dedicated to improve, to renew and to advance. Another run after a game you did not take part in, another mental workout to strengthen your confidence, another personal training to improve any parameter that can promote you as a footballer. Do you have a dream? High hopes? Fight for them, set a target, do whatever it takes to achieve it and do not let anything move you away from it. Because in the end, you, just you, will determine how your career will look!
For you. Tomer Hemed.
What do you think?
