Kevin Barra is a well-known name in amateur soccer in Essen. The SV Burgaltendorf player answers our forecasting questionnaire.
Things are not going so well for Kevin Barra with SV Burgaltendorf. The team from Essen have not been able to get any further than mid-table. The club had set its sights on promotion to the Landesliga.
Barra, who has already experienced so much in his football career and beyond, is also disappointed. After all, he, who has already played 283 Oberliga games and 34 Regionalliga games, should lead Burgaltendorf back to the Landesliga.
The 33-year-old midfielder answered our forecasting questionnaire.
My greatest strength is… my shooting technique.
My greatest weakness is… my physicality.
In our dressing room… there’s always a good mood and a cold beer is never missing.
The best moment of my football career was… that was, of course, the promotions from the Landesliga to the Regionalliga with FC Kray. That was simply terrific and I don’t think that any other club from Essen will repeat that. We wrote amateur football history in Essen. I am proud to have been able to write a part of it.
The best goal of my career was… a goal with Schonnebeck against Ratingen. I scored from the left and it went into the right corner. The ball was stuck up there in the corner. Just perfect!
I didn’t become a professional footballer because… unfortunately, I had a stroke of fate at the age of 16. I had to take an eight-month break after a robbery. Yes, and at that time I was doing very well at VfL Bochum under coach Andreas Urban. I was one of the best in the B1 team at the time. Sascha Lewandowski had given a training session for the most talented U17, U19 and U23 players and I was there too. But after the forced break, nothing was the same again. I then had to consider whether I still wanted to play football at all. Andreas Winkler, who was the head of youth development at Rot-Weiss Essen at the time, convinced me to make a fresh start and I switched to RWE. But it was clear to me that I would no longer become a professional. I started and completed an apprenticeship.
The best thing about the Ruhr area is… the city of Essen.
Either, or?
Dortmund or Schalke? Dortmund.
Beer or water? Beer.
Club or bar? Bar.
Natural or artificial turf? I am a child of ash and have always been happy about games on natural grass. When the artificial turf in Kray was later completed, I came to appreciate it. Therefore: natural turf in the past, artificial turf today.
Warrior or artist? I can do both, but I’m more of an artist.
Football on TV or in the stadium? I used to love being in the stands with a beer in my hand, but today I prefer the comfort of my own home.
Finally, a few questions:
Who would you like to have a beer with? Lionel Messi. He’s the best footballer in the world. He’s more complete than Cristiano Ronaldo. I’d have a few questions for Lionel.
What makes you laugh?
Everything. Jokes, but also myself.
What is indispensable for you?
My family! Which now consists of my wife and our two children.
What kind of music do you like to listen to and what do you play in the changing room?
I listen to everything now – every genre. Johnny Sylt is our man for music in the changing room. He does it properly (laughs).
If you could start over, what would you do differently in your life?
I am completely satisfied and fulfilled. My motto in life, at the latest since the robbery, is: That’s life – sometimes the sun shines, sometimes it rains.