LAST MONDAY, KIERAN Djilali watched from the bench as Cork City secured an emphatic 4-1 victory over Drogheda United at Turners Cross.
It was a long way from the glamour Djilali had been used to earlier in his career. The London-born midfielder came through the academy at Crystal Palace, earning a trial with Manchester United in 2007 and making his debut as a 17-year-old at Palace.
Just when he seemed to be gaining a bit of momentum in senior football however, he was dropped by then-manager George Burley.
Following loan spells at Chesterfield and Crawley Town, Djilali ultimately left Palace to join AFC Wimbledon in 2011. He was then released along with a number of other players after just one season with the side, but returned following a brief, ill-fated spell at Portsmouth, in which manager Michael Appleton heavily criticised the player’s fitness. Djilali was let go by Wimbledon again in 2013, and subsequently made the move to Ireland, and is now at Cork, following previous spells with Sligo and Limerick.
Did the player find it intimidating at all moving to a new country in search of a more permanent footballing home?
“It took me time to settle in, but it wasn’t a conscious thing,” he tells The42. “I felt quite comfortable with where I was living and stuff like that. Obviously, it took me time to settle, as it took me four or five months to get in the team and really hit form in my first season. So subconsciously, something was holding me back, but at the time, it didn’t feel daunting or anything.”
Djilali had arguably the best spell of his career so far at Sligo, establishing himself as an important member of a side that won both the FAI Cup and the Setanta Sports Cup during his time there. Consequently, the player was disappointed at being booed upon his return to his former club with Cork recently.
“Of course it’s hurtful,” he says. “At one stage, they were cheering me and I won two trophies there in two seasons. I didn’t really see why I was getting booed, so that’s the fans’ choice. I never personally did anything to them.
“I’ve always maintained that if I did score against them, I wouldn’t celebrate and I will always respect the time that I spent there, because at the end of the day, at one stage they were paying my wages and I did enjoy my time there. So no matter what they say about me or say to me, or however they deem to treat me in the future, I’ll still respect the time that I spent at the club.”
(Djilali pictured in action against Pat’s earlier this season)
And while Djilali has not always been starting in the Cork side this season, his outlook remains upbeat.
“I would obviously like to play more. Every player wants to play every game. If you don’t, there are problems there. Billy [Dennehy]’s got seven goals this year, Shepp [Karl Sheppard] has got six playing out wide, so I knew it was going to be a tough team to break into. When I do get my chance, I just have to play to the best of my ability and hopefully, the manager thinks that that’s good enough.”
Prior to the start of the current campaign, Cork were boosted by the signing of former Man United and Celtic player Liam Miller. And Djilali says the ex-Ireland international is someone that young players such as himself can learn from.
“Liam’s a great lad. He’s very humble. He’s obviously played at a very high level, but he’s always willing to help younger players and he takes good care of himself as well.
“He’s always doing extra little bits in the gym and after training as well, so for someone who’s getting on in his career, he’s still in very good condition. So he’s someone that the younger boys should look up to.”
Miller’s presence is an indication of the relatively high standards in certain parts of the League of Ireland. A sizable proportion of the current Ireland squad began life in the domestic game, and Djilali — someone who has played with and against a number of Premier League players — believes many Irish-based footballers have enough quality to make an impact across the water.
“There are a lot of footballers in League of Ireland who could be playing at higher levels,” he says. “But I think there’s not enough money for the league to be [at that level]. You have the top teams that are training every day, but teams at the bottom may only be training twice a week and they’d only be part time.
“You’d expect the full-time players to be better, but I think with more investment from the government bodies and people like that, trying to attract more fans to generate income, the league could progress to a higher standard. But I think the standard in the league this year especially is quite high… You can see from our results — we only got a 1-0 win away at Bray — there are tough games.”
(Djilali appearing on Soccer AM while at Palace)
And while you would imagine living in Cork would be somewhat of a culture shock compared with a city as huge as London, Djilali says the two places are not as different as many people may suspect.
“Everyone over here says London’s all to do with hustle-and-bustle and stuff, but that’s what I’m used to — that’s the norm for me. That’s what we’re comfortable with.
“I’m not sure if it makes that much of a difference. Obviously London’s a bit bigger, but Cork’s a really nice city. There’s a lot to do here. It’s obviously highly populated and stuff. It’s different to Sligo, which is a lot smaller. In terms of London, it’s probably pretty similar but on a slightly smaller scale.”
Yet while he is enjoying his current life, the 24-year-old remains as ambitious as ever and would be open to a return to England if a big enough club came calling.
“I want to play at as high a level as possible and if that means going back to England, that’s what I’m going to do. But at the moment, I need to concentrate on performing for Cork City, getting into the team regularly and seeing what kind of performances I can put in. Then, hopefully, someone will be watching, so I’ve really got to play as well as I can.”
Djilali is a big admirer of Cork manager and club legend John Caulfield, and the midfielder says he compares favourably with previous relatively high-profile coaches he has worked with, including George Burley and Neal Ardley.
“I think John’s biggest attribute would be his passion. Day in day out, he’s very enthusiastic. He never comes in on a downer — he’s always pretty upbeat and always really focused on what we have to do for the day, whether it’s training or game days.”
As for the club itself, Djilali is hopeful they can sustain a strong title challenge despite Dundalk’s formidable form in recent weeks.
“I think we started the season well. Especially at home — only losing the one game so far. We need to be picking up a few more points away from home and I think we can do that going forward.
“We have to produce performances week in week out, we can’t look too far ahead… So I’m sure if we do that, we’ll be there or thereabouts.
“You do tend to look forward as a player and obviously, there’s the FAI Cup and Europe as well. If we can get through a couple of rounds in Europe, that’d be great, not just for us, but for the league as well. So hopefully, we can challenge on all fronts.”
