“I thought we were just having lunch together”
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Photo and interview by Patrik Nilsson.
Tyler Lissette is new to both Värnamo and Sweden but has already learned to love the city and the country.
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Hotel Three Lilies. Sports manager Tomas Lundqvist and coach Christian Järdler have invited New Zealander and center-back Tyler Lissette to lunch. “I didn’t know why they wanted to meet, I thought we were just having lunch together. They started talking about football and the team and I thought, ‘Well, then I guess I have to go back to New Zealand …’ but then they said they wanted me to play. I said yes straight away! I was a little surprised, I don’t know why” he says laughing. “I forgot how the rest of the day went but I do remember that straight after I ran to the phone and called my mum. She was both happy and angry that she wouldn’t see me for a while, haha.” Lissette had thus impressed both Christian Järdler and Tomas Lundqvist to earn himself a contract. Something that was the goal when he came to Sweden, but that certainly was not a certainty – and how he came to Sweden is half a story in itself.
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“I wanted to see how good of a player I could be. To come here and get out of my comfort zone with a new style of play, new coach and get better. Sweden and Värnamo is a fantastic place to be. It is the biggest reason.” But when he came to the Swedish land he did not know what would await him. “It’s through a friend of a friend of a friend. A New Zealander, like me. Dan Keat who is in GAIS. He told me to come over and that Sweden was a fantastic place. So I said: Why not?” He came to Gothenburg and trialled for GAIS, Västerås and Nyköping. But it was Värnamo that he liked best. “I went back to New Zealand but kept in touch with Tomas (Lundqvist) and I was lucky that they invited me to Sweden again. And I loved the time in Värnamo when I was there before.”
“I wanted to see how good of a player I could be. To come here and get out of my comfort zone with a new style of play, new coach and get better. Sweden and Värnamo is a fantastic place to be. It is the biggest reason.” But when he came to the Swedish land he did not know what would await him. “It’s through a friend of a friend of a friend. A New Zealander, like me. Dan Keat who is in GAIS. He told me to come over and that Sweden was a fantastic place. So I said: Why not?” He came to Gothenburg and trialled for GAIS, Västerås and Nyköping. But it was Värnamo that he liked best. “I went back to New Zealand but kept in touch with Tomas (Lundqvist) and I was lucky that they invited me to Sweden again. And I loved the time in Värnamo when I was there before.”
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What was it you loved? “Honestly, it was the people. As soon as I came here, everybody was extremely helpful. There were too many people who offered me a ride, haha. They knew that I did not know anyone, so they took me and went skating among other things.” He came back to Värnamo and has since remained. “I’m starting to learn the Swedish lifestyle.” And you have learned how to drink coffee! “Haha. Yes, after training they always ask me if I wanted to go for coffee, so I learned pretty quickly!”
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Now waiting for the season opener on Sunday against Atvidaberg, Tyler has been drilled into the Värnamo way of play during his first couple of months in Sweden. In fact, he was one of the better players on the field as they drew 2-2 against Elfsborg in the Swedish Cup. “It’s a step up for me. It’s very professional and everyone is really competitive. It probably took two weeks before I did well.” His hopes are to be in the starting line-up for the opening game of the season, and play in front of “the angry mother” who will probably be on the happy side when she sees her son play in a Swedish football ground. “I am really looking forward to it. She has never been to Sweden, so now I get to be the guide.”
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What will you show her? “I always find something that interests me. But I like the walk to the training. Going over the river and through the woods. It is both calming and beautiful.”
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For the full article (in Swedish) click here.
