Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg: Tottenham midfielder on caring for his dying father

1 year ago 36

Until the property of 16, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg had 1 of those classical shot backmost stories. The Spurs and Denmark midfielder started young, was spotted by Bayern Munich and endured a hard determination to a overseas country, distant from his family.

But past his dad, Christian, was diagnosed with crab and moved to Germany to beryllium with his teenage lad portion helium underwent chemotherapy.

Suddenly, aged conscionable 17, the young footballer became a carer.

Speaking to BBC's Football Focus, Hojbjerg talks astir that experience, his dad's decease and the "scars" helium inactive bears.

"My begetter would ever instrumentality attraction of me, past abruptly I had to instrumentality attraction of him," helium says. "I was cooking for him, I was putting him successful bed, making definite that helium got his medicine and each of these things. These things scar you a bit.

"It didn't spell arsenic we hoped, helium passed distant successful April [2014]. I finished the season, I played the cupful final, I got my nationalist squad debut. From a sports position the play truly finished connected a high, but from a beingness position it truly finished connected a low.

"I had trouble to motivate myself. It's the archetypal clip really that I person spoken astir it similar this."

Moving to Germany unsocial astatine 16

Hojbjerg's footballing travel began successful his location metropolis of Copenhagen, aft a scout for Bundesliga giants Bayern Munch saw his imaginable portion playing successful a section derby.

Six months aboriginal helium moved his "whole beingness to Germany".

"I was determination successful the airport, my parent and begetter were there. They drove me, they stood connected the escalators and I was waving astatine them and I could easy person cried that time, easily," helium says.

"But I stayed beardown due to the fact that I was looking guardant to the accidental ahead. I'm precise grateful that I really did it due to the fact that I learned a batch astir myself, I learned a batch astir this shot satellite that I ever someway dreamt of. I retrieve it was hard for my mother.

"My begetter thought it was a bully situation but helium told maine that I had to proceed successful school, that was the lone woody that we made. I ne'er did - but let's not spell there!

"I sacrificed a batch due to the fact that I was 16, astir 17, going retired of the country, leaving your comfortableness portion and your friends behind, it touches you a spot you know."

'Sad, frustrated, angry' - dad's crab diagnosis

Hojbjerg signed for Bayern successful July 2012 and spent a twelvemonth successful Munich earlier his dada became ill.

Then Bayern manager Jupp Heynckes gave the teen his first-team debut successful April, 2013, aged 17 years, 251 days. At that constituent helium was the club's youngest ever player.

"I retrieve getting injured successful the opening of August [2013]," Hojbjerg recalls.

"I thought 'my beingness is finished I can't play for a mates of weeks, everything is truly bad'.

"A mates of days later, my begetter calls maine and it was truly hard for him to speak. He was precise quiescent and not saying immoderate words, but staying connected the telephone and I asked what's incorrect and helium said it wasn't bully and helium had cancer.

"I retrieve being precise sad, truly sad. I was frustrated, besides aggravated due to the fact that I was truthful acold distant from location and it puts everything into perspective.

"In this case, they tried to widen his life, not prevention it.

"I volition beryllium everlastingly grateful to Bayern Munich due to the fact that they helped maine a batch and I spoke to them and they said 'OK travel to Munich' and we volition find a solution. My begetter came to Munich implicit six times of astir 10 days, wherever helium got his chemotherapy."

'I ever tried to beryllium strong, I paid for that later'

"What makes maine slumber amended astatine nighttime is that the champion clip I really had with my begetter was that time," says Hojbjerg, who rapidly turned from a young footballer anxious to marque his mark, to a 17-year-old antheral with worries and responsibilities.

"When helium came, I could truly amusement him that I knew however to instrumentality attraction of myself and I could instrumentality attraction of him and I could amusement him that I americium really becoming a man.

"We had immoderate large talks, we had immoderate hard talks, immoderate that volition enactment with maine forever, besides immoderate that wounded maine a spot due to the fact that I would emotion for him to beryllium present today.

"The lone happening that was hard for maine was that I ever tried to beryllium strong, I ne'er had a bittersweet look successful beforehand of him and I paid for that aboriginal connected successful my beingness due to the fact that I held truthful overmuch back."

'My begetter is with maine a batch - successful everything I do'

Hojbjerg, present 27, made his archetypal Bayern commencement 5 days aft his dad's decease successful April 2014, past spent six months connected indebtedness astatine Augsburg and a twelvemonth astatine Schalke earlier sealing a £12.8m determination to Southampton successful July, 2016.

After 4 years connected the southbound coast, helium arrived successful London pursuing a £16m power to Tottenham and has continued to marque his people connected the Premier League arsenic a commanding beingness astatine the bosom of their midfield.

"I had trouble for a mates of years [after his father's death]," Hojbjerg says. "I conscionable didn't find the existent intent until I had my daughter. I retrieve saying to my parent erstwhile I had my girl that yet beingness gave maine thing back. My kids are everything. I volition bash everything for them.

"My begetter is with maine a batch - successful everything I bash - and helium gives maine inspiration similar my household do, similar my kids do, truthful they are with me.

"I genuinely judge that a batch - not conscionable successful football, but successful beingness - of what you are giving to the radical astir you, the sacrifices you make, you volition get it back.

"Sometimes, I besides accidental to myself that I didn't marque it successful Bayern, but connected the different manus I wouldn't beryllium who I americium without the 3 years I had there. I ever telephone it the schoolhouse of champions."