2026-05-10, 02:13 PM - Word count:
The Evenings by Gerard Reve
It was a bad week for us. Losing to İstanbul was one thing, but the 7-1 result against PS Jakarta was simply not good enough. On the bus back, I finished The Evenings by Gerard Reve. It’s a famous Dutch book about Frits van Egters, a guy who spends ten days just watching time pass. He sits at home, talks to his parents, and observes the small, boring details of everyday life. Reading Reve made me think of the bottle job being done by Arsenal. They talk about the process and have all the talent, but then the pressure hits and they just fold. That is how it felt on the pitch this week. We have a squad with plenty of ability, but against Jakarta, we looked like a team that just gave up. Like the Arsenal, we bottled it. We were just individuals watching the game happen to us
I have my speed and acceleration, and I keep making my runs, but it doesn't matter much if the team isn't clicking. We have the talent, but we lacked the will to win this week. Like Frits in the book, we were just counting down the minutes until the evening was over and the whistle finally blew. Frits van Egters ends the book by saying that "it has been seen." He means that even the boring and ugly moments are part of the record. That’s how I feel about that 7-1 scoreline. It happened, it’s on the record, and there’s no point in being overly dramatic about it. We just need to stop staring at the clock and start playing as a team again. We need to make sure this bottle job was a one-time thing.
Rating: 4/5 Next Week: Hopefully a better result.
It was a bad week for us. Losing to İstanbul was one thing, but the 7-1 result against PS Jakarta was simply not good enough. On the bus back, I finished The Evenings by Gerard Reve. It’s a famous Dutch book about Frits van Egters, a guy who spends ten days just watching time pass. He sits at home, talks to his parents, and observes the small, boring details of everyday life. Reading Reve made me think of the bottle job being done by Arsenal. They talk about the process and have all the talent, but then the pressure hits and they just fold. That is how it felt on the pitch this week. We have a squad with plenty of ability, but against Jakarta, we looked like a team that just gave up. Like the Arsenal, we bottled it. We were just individuals watching the game happen to us
I have my speed and acceleration, and I keep making my runs, but it doesn't matter much if the team isn't clicking. We have the talent, but we lacked the will to win this week. Like Frits in the book, we were just counting down the minutes until the evening was over and the whistle finally blew. Frits van Egters ends the book by saying that "it has been seen." He means that even the boring and ugly moments are part of the record. That’s how I feel about that 7-1 scoreline. It happened, it’s on the record, and there’s no point in being overly dramatic about it. We just need to stop staring at the clock and start playing as a team again. We need to make sure this bottle job was a one-time thing.
Rating: 4/5 Next Week: Hopefully a better result.
In the sunset of dissolution, everything is illuminated by the aura of nostalgia, even the guillotine.
![[Image: ySrStzC.jpeg]](https://i.imgur.com/ySrStzC.jpeg)
