Chapter 105: Legacy in the Making
Thursday, June 3, 2010
As Niels boarded a morning train from Amsterdam to a small town near Eindhoven, he carried with him the steady rhythm of the city's canals and the memory of Thomas's advice: 'Start building a coaching identity. One that travels with you.'
In his pocket, a note reminded him: 'Keep going. We're behind you.'
His worn backpack sat at his feet, weighed down with a book on football psychology, notes from Milan, Genoa, Utrecht, and the Dutch countryside, and the growing story he was building with his players. The train moved smoothly through the Dutch landscape flat green fields, quiet canals, and windmills slowly turning under a soft summer sky.
This visit to a well-known youth academy near Eindhoven was his last stop before heading back to Broadfield's muddy pitches, a chance to gather fresh ideas for the legacy he and his players were working to build.
