Humility is key, Risser tells footballers

Windhoek-born former SKW and Brave Warriors midfielder Oliver Risser says bickering and infighting is ruining Namibian football.

The athletic star didn’t experience the Namibian Premier League after he jetted out of the country for Germany as a 17-year-old, where he spent two seasons with the Borussia Dortmund reserve team in the German third division.

Apart from representing Namibia internationally, the retired midfielder also had spells in Norway, Finland, England and Belgium.

Risser missed out on the chance to become the third Namibian player to play in the Uefa Champions League after he helped his club, Kuopion Palloseura (Kups), to a second-placed finish in the Finnish Veikkausliiga (top league).

“Although I’m disappointed not to have made history with Kups after I opted to go to the United Kingdom (UK) to play for Swindon, my career in the UK actually saved me financially, because they offered me much more than I ever earned at any of my previous clubs.

“I was very young going to Europe and I made a few poor decisions with my finances that I’m not proud of. I wasted money and had to make a hard decision signing for Swindon Town just four days before Kups were making their historic European debut.”

The former SKW prodigy says a physiotherapist at Dortmund miraculously helped him regain his fitness after sustaining an injury.

Risser describes himself as a passionate and hardworking midfielder who thrived on his technical ability.

“Technical ability is not to dribble past a cluster of opponents, but rather about your passing range, your touch, first touch, second touch, and vision. Those were my strengths,” he says.

“I had a great engine. I was a very good passer of the ball. I had a great shot and good vision.”

Apart from representing the country at junior volleyball level, Risser was also karateka of note and won many belts during an exceptional sporting career at school.

He says playing for the Brave Warriors came with a lot of backlash from football fans.

“My first call-up to the national team came with a lot of criticism. A section of the fans were absolutely against my inclusion. I didn’t blame them, because I was a closed book to local football fans. I left Namibia at an early age and was unknown to many,” he says.

“I am, however, thankful to former national coach Peter Ueberjahn who stuck by me and even played me on my first national team call-up against a formidable opponent like Algeria. We lost the match 1-0, but I played my way into the hearts of the Namibians that day.”

Risser was also part of the fortunate group of players who represented Namibia at the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) finals for only the second time after he was selected for the squad that competed at the 2008 Afcon in Ghana.

“It is always a great honour to play for your country, which comes with huge responsibility,” he says.

“Turning out for Namibia against the best of Africa was the greatest thing I could have ever wished for. My only wish is that we also had all the proper structures the players are enjoying today. I am sure our national team could have improved drastically.”

Risser says Namibia had a lot of great players during his time, but the lack of proper structures could not help them elevate their game.

PATIENCE

“I have made a lot of mistakes during my playing days. I just wish I could have been a little more patient and more conservative with some of the hasty decisions I have made. In life, I don’t have regrets, mistakes make us learn from them, so I have learnt,” he says.

WORK, FAMILY

Risser is married and has two children.

Together with his father he runs a butchery in Windhoek.

“I belong to a family of entrepreneurs. We have a butchery at Prosperita. It actually started off with a friend of mine, then my father came in later, so my father and I am running that butchery now,” he says.

“We also make charcoal and own a piggery. We believe in value adding, so we produce our own pork, lamb and mutton. The processing takes place in our butchery. That’s what I do during the day – help to run the family business.”

Risser says he still spends a lot of time on football.

He is the head coach and technical director of DTS, and they are busy remodelling the club, he says.

“Our approach is to get an end product of those who played in the first team and are playing in the Khomas Second Division at the moment. We are promoting players from our junior structures at the ages of 15, 16 and 17,” the retired star says.

“That translates to developing and giving that boy a chance to play football in professional leagues outside the borders of Namibia at the ages of 20, 21 and 22. That’s our aim at DTS.”

He says although they remain faithful to their ambitions, money is the biggest challenge.

“This is where I bring in the Namibian Football Association hierarchy. Because of the bickering, infighting and power struggles within the controlling body, corporate Namibia has lost faith in our football and they don’t want to invest any more,” Risser says.

He says the team currently has six top-quality players, adding that he wished he could have been a better player.

His advice to young players is to be humble and disciplined “because humility is the key aspect in life”.