Drawn by professionalism

Defensive midfielder Július Szöke swaps Kazakhstan for Belarus

From Shakhter to Shakhtyor. It may look the same, but in terms of distance and football culture, it is completely different. The Kazakh city of Karagandy, where Slovak defensive midfielder Július Szöke played for Shakhter for two years, is 3,800 kilometres away from the Belarusian city of Soligorsk, where he will now play for Shakhtyor. You could say that he is moving that much closer to home.

“It’s a new challenge. I’m looking forward to it. I already felt that I needed a change, so I was glad when this offer came. I’m curious to see what awaits me in Belarus and what it will be like there. Even though it’s a country closer to us, it’s still culturally different from Kazakhstan, so it will be something new,” said the 22-year-old Szöke, who agreed a two-year contract.

“He’s going to a good league and a good club, one that will play in European competition. We negotiated excellent conditions. The transfer had been in the works for some time—Soligorsk wanted him already in the summer, but now the timing was right. Julko speaks Russian and is already adapted to this environment. I think it’s a good step in every respect,” said his agent Jozef Tokos.

Shakhtyor Soligorsk is among the top Belarusian clubs. They have been league champions once (2005) and runners-up five times (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2016). They have won the Belarusian Cup twice (2004, 2014) and lost in the final five times (2006, 2008, 2009, 2015, 2017). In the last season, played on the spring–autumn schedule as usual in Belarus, they finished third behind BATE Borisov and Dinamo Minsk, just three points off the top. With two rounds remaining, they were still league leaders.

“In the next season, Soligorsk will be aiming for the title—that’s clear. They will also be playing in the Europa League, where the goal is to get as far as possible. As for me, I was told I’ll be playing in the number six role and won’t be asked to play out of position. Of course, they will expect a lot from me—they’ve been watching me for a long time. I’m pleased about that, but it also comes with responsibility,” Szöke said.

Financially, the move will be an improvement compared to his Kazakh club. “But it’s not about the money. I actually had slightly better financial offers from other Kazakh clubs. What attracted me was the serious and professional way they communicated. I see this as a challenge, and I feel this is the right step for me.”

At his previous club, Szöke was a fan favourite and a regular starter. “We even discussed extending my contract, which was about to expire. But by then I already knew about the offer from Belarus and saw it as a good and interesting opportunity. Then, in Shakhter Karagandy, there were more major shake-ups, and right now the club still doesn’t have a president or coach. So there was no one to negotiate with me, which actually made my decision easier. If there had been someone to put pressure on me, maybe it would have been harder to leave,” added the native of Hnúšťa.

Direct flight a bonus
Compared with the 4,000 kilometres and full-day travel from Kazakhstan, the new destination is much more convenient. “There’s a direct flight from Minsk to Budapest, and from Budapest it’s only about 150 kilometres to my home. It’s really something completely different from before,” said Július Szöke.