AMMAN: Football is just as much a game of the mind as it is of the feet. At least that's what Johan Cruyff would say. Socceroos defender Tarek Elrich may not have been thinking of the Dutch great's philosophy but learned those lessons himself after realising the only thing preventing him from becoming an international footballer was his own attitude.
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The fullback always had high expectations but his inability to forgive himself for mistakes held him back from being a Socceroo. A new attitude has led to his rapid transformation from one-time A-League reject to one of the best fullbacks in Australia.
Days would pass before he would speak to those closest to him after a game, even longer if he felt his performance contributed to a defeat. Elrich developed a knack of beating himself up over any mistake and briefly isolating himself from the world.
"I didn't want to talk to anyone. If I made a mistake in that game - forget about it. I wouldn't talk until training when the boys would cheer me up," Elrich said.
It wasn't until his first pre-season game with Adelaide United in 2013 when that all changed. After playing it safe by hitting an aimless long ball down the line to avoid making an error, Elrich came under criticism of then Reds coach Josep Gombau.
"Next time you do that, you'll be sitting next to me," Gombau told Elrich. "I'd rather you run and try to play out there, I don't care if we're winning, play it. Every time you have the ball, just play. I'd rather you lose the ball than kick it down the line for no reason. If you make a mistake and they score from it, you're still playing next week."
It was the moment that taught Elrich to accept the possibility of mistakes and focus on being part of a positive, attacking and possession-based system of play. He went on to become a more exciting player, even scoring a goal that was voted the best of last season's A-League to help earn his international debut at the age of 28 this season.
"Every game now, I just go out there and have fun. I used to put myself under a lot much pressure in the past. If I made a mistake I was my harshest critic and I wouldn't sleep for days after it and it took me a while to get over a simple loss," he said.
At one point in his career, playing for the Socceroos seemed so far a dream that playing for parents country of birth, Lebanon, appeared a more realistic option. Elrich now has his eyes set on playing in Russia at the 2018 World Cup, beginning with the next away game to Jordan where not even the hostile crowd will impact a man whose ambition is now balanced with a calm demeanour.
"There's no need to stress about things that happen. You would beat yourself up, take it out on your family so what were you achieving?" Elrich said. "Now I'm at that age where I'm just enjoying it."
