When Dominik Szoboszlai consistently puts up explosive displays in his first four months at Liverpool, it’s tempting to assume he’s adjusting to life on Merseyside like a duck to water.

However, we only see what he does on the pitch for a few hours each week, not the reality of a young guy adjusting to a new life in a strange nation following a high-profile career transition.

 

In an open interview with journalist Mark Soos for Fodball, the 23-year-old discussed his life outside of sport.

In one comment translated by Bence Bocsak on X, Szoboszlai admits to feeling ‘lonely’ throughout his time in England thus far.

The Liverpool player said: “I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel lonely sometimes. There are days when I’m just sitting on the couch wondering about what to do. Then I put on a movie and try to fall asleep, hoping for tomorrow.”

It’s easy to fall into the trap of viewing top-level football players as Teflon-like commodities who make so much money that they should just get on with it and be happy for the opportunity to live their dream.

 

However, the football players we cheer for each week are people like us who go through good and bad times, and their confident, joyful public personas may conceal the difficulties they face in their personal lives.

It should be noted that Szoboszlai is only 23 years old and is still adjusting to life in England, which includes a cultural and linguistic shift (though his English is excellent), as well as the pressure of repaying the £60 million fee paid for him by one of the world’s biggest clubs.

 

As much as we enjoy watching him perform wonders on the pitch, it is even more vital that he is happy and healthy in his everyday life on Merseyside.

He deserves a lot of respect for having the courage to confess his feelings of vulnerability and loneliness away from the pitch, but he couldn’t have asked for a greater manager than Jurgen Klopp to handle those concerns with sensitivity and compassion.

We hope Szoboszlai will be able to rely on a reliable support network to get him through the tough times away from Anfield.