Hungarian League I: Tim Hall considers the opportunity in Újpest a special challenge

This week, in the history of Hungarian League I, the first ever footballer from Luxembourg in the person of Tim Hall was signed by Újpest FC. The 25-year-old center-back has previously played for Lierse in Belgium, Karpaty Lviv in Ukraine, Gil Vicente in Portugal, Wisła Kraków in Poland and most recently for Ethnikos in Cyprus. The four-time senior national team player has long been in the Purple and White's crosshairs, so they will likely be looking to make their first winter signing.

"I've been in contact with the club several times in the past few years, the previous head coach Michael Oenning wanted to sign me," Tim Hall told Nemzeti Sport. “I had offers from Turkey, and I was also approached from home, but I waited a long time to find the best opportunity. My agent told me that the Purple and Whites were still interested in me, and I thought it would be a good choice for me. The Hungarian League is improving year by year, the infrastructure is good, our fans are great, so I consider the opportunity in Újpest a special challenge. In December, I traveled to Budapest for three days when the club assessed my fitness and would have signed me, but there was no time for a medical examination before the training camp. On my return from Turkey, I passed the assessment and signed the contract."

The 190-centimeter-tall player has benefited from the ten days in Antalya, which has helped him settle into his new team.

"It was good to prepare abroad, it was important to play in training matches because I hadn't had a team since July, I was training alone with my former club, Niederkorn in Luxembourg. To reassure everyone, I didn't spend the last six months doing nothing, I worked hard and I'm in relatively good shape to start the season and I'll be in perfect condition by the start. I got to know my teammates and the professional staff both on and off the pitch, and these ten days have helped me settle in. The test matches have shown that we play good football, but we need to be more focused in front of the goal; make too many mistakes in the attacking third. Our game needs to be effective, so we will be looking to improve our finishing in the coming period. Our tenth position in the table is not a good reflection of the strength of the team and I will try to help us to improve our ranking."

As far as we know, the professional staff led by MilošKruščić has a good opinion of him, but the question is how much help he will be for Újpest. According to InStat's data analysis, he is highly effective in tackles and duels, but he is not mobile and sometimes misses opponents who run into empty spaces.

"I like to play my part in building the attack, I like to start the action from the back with a good pass," said the Luxembourg defender. “I read the game well, I really like playing under pressure. I'm brave enough to go one-on-one duels, and I win a good percentage of them. I hope I can help the team. I want to play as much as possible, I want to show that I can be counted on. I hope that if I perform well, I will be considered for the European Championship qualifiers by national team head coach Luc Holtz. Few people know that there are only three or four professional football teams in Luxembourg, and most of the players have full-time jobs and go to training after work.

I have a much better chance of getting back into the national team now that I can continue my career abroad because the Luxembourg national team has improved a lot - as the Hungarians could see in November. I didn't know much about Hungarian football before, but what I have seen of the league so far makes it look strong and interesting. I've played against a Hungarian team once before, four years ago, with Niederkorn, we knocked Budapest Honvéd out of the Europa League qualifiers. I know two players from NB I, I went to Standard Liege's academy with the Mmaee brothers, who are playing for Ferencváros, and I followed their careers. I know that the Green and Whites and Újpest are old rivals, the derby is the most popular match in Hungary, I'm really looking forward to this clash."

WINTER TRANSFERS TO AND FROM ÚJPEST FC
Arrived:Tim Hall(Luxembourg, free transfer, Ethnikos Achnas – Cyprus),Ognjen Mudrinski(Serbia, Lamphun Warriors FC – Thailand, free transfer)
Arrived on loan:–
Returned from loan: Dominik Kovács (Kolorcity Kazincbarcika)
Promoted from the youth team/signed a professional contract: –
Selected players: –
Left: Miroslav Bjeloš(Serbia, FK Mladost Lučani – Serbia, free transfer),Junior Tallo(Côte d'Ivoire, contract termination, free transfer)
Left on loan: OgnjenRadošević (Serbia, Szentlőrinc)
Can return to their clubs from loan:–
Can leave/be interested in: –

Translated by Vanda Orosz