Third division club Rot-Weiss Essen are currently at training camp in Arnhem. Forecasting spoke to new signing Ramien Safi.
Rot-Weiss Essen are at training camp in Arnhem from Tuesday to Sunday. For Ramien Safi it is a trip back home. The new signing from SV Rödinghausen was born in Groningen, two hours away from Arnhem, and grew up in The Hague. The new number eleven has been living in Germany for ten years – now also in Essen.
Safi has worked his way up from the bottom to the top in his soccer career to date. He played in the national league until 2019. He then made the step up through the Oberliga and Regionalliga to the 3rd division. “Of course, every child dreams of becoming a professional footballer at some point. That has always been my goal. I never said it out loud, but I always believed in this opportunity. Nevertheless, I successfully completed my apprenticeship as a wholesale and foreign trade merchant in Bremen. Back then, I worked until 5 p.m. and then had training afterwards. That was tough. When I got the offer from SV Rödinghausen, I just played soccer,” explains Safi in the interview.
Keyword SV Rödinghausen: The 24-year-old played for the 2020 regional league champions for the last two years and celebrated his breakthrough last season with ten goals. This attracted the attention of higher-class clubs – including Rot-Weiss Essen.
“In my first season, I first had to get used to the higher level and the professionalism. That was a big leap and I also needed time to establish myself. It was a completely new world for me. In the second year, I already knew everything. Then you play more freely. I worked really hard and now I’m even prouder that I’ve officially made the leap to professional,” emphasizes the winger.
Christoph Dabrowski and Marcus Steegmann gave me a very good feeling.
Ramien Safi
When Safi received the offer from RWE, the 1.77-meter man didn’t have to think twice. He was immediately hooked: “At the end of last season, I got the information from my advisor that Rot-Weiss Essen had contacted me. I had already met with other clubs before that, but I had a much better feeling about RWE. I was then invited to the game against 1860 Munich, got to know the people in charge and had a look at everything. It then happened very quickly. Christoph Dabrowski and Marcus Steegmann gave me a very good feeling. The lads also made me feel very welcome here. They are all very hard-working and pull together. That’s a lot of fun.”
Essen’s former goalscorer and crowd favorite Simon Engelmann also played a role in Safi’s move. The four-time Regionalliga top scorer provided some arguments for the move to Hafenstrasse. “I contacted him after RWE got in touch with me. “Engel” told me how great it is to play in front of these fans. He only told me positive things,” says Safi.
The speedy attacker is now looking forward to his new challenge and wants to bring his strengths to the team: “I come through my speed and am a speed dribbler. I always try to make the best possible use of my teammates. Those are my qualities. Off the pitch, I would describe myself as an open, likeable family man. I speak four languages fluently.”
Even though the new signing has set himself personal goals for his first season as a professional, the team’s success comes first: “I want to get to know the boys as well as possible so that they can use my strengths. We want to implement what the coach gives us. That is our goal. We want to play with conviction. I don’t want to talk about league positions yet. It’s too early for that. “
I’m taking everything in my stride. I’m all the more eager to finally experience this feeling. I’m extremely excited because I’ve never played in front of so many fans before!
Safi on the opener against Aachen
The Dutchman will play his first competitive match for RWE on August 3rd in the 3rd division against Alemannia Aachen – probably at a sold-out Hafenstraße. Safi, who is sharing a room with Mustafa Kourouma at the training camp, is already really looking forward to his debut: “It really doesn’t get any better than this. I’m letting everything come to me. I’m all the more eager to finally experience this feeling. I’m extremely excited because I’ve never played in front of so many fans before!”