27.04.2020 - 15:00 | Source: Transfermarkt | Reading Time: 7 mins

Pacific FC Owner Rob Friend's search for the next Davies - "They are out there, absolutely!"

From Bundesliga star to owner of a Canadian Premier League franchise, Rob Friend has made the transition quite nicely. The former Borussia Mönchengladbach, Hertha, Eintracht Frankfurt, and 1860 Munich striker is now part-owner and the CEO of the Victoria-based CanPL club Pacific FC.

A very young Pacific FC finished fifth in the inaugural 2019 season. Not a perfect result, but it was supposed to be a good foundation for the second-ever CanPL season. That season, which was supposed to start on Apr. 10, was put on hold by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I think at the start of this whole thing, it was a shock, how to manage your business, how to manage your personal life, your family life,” Friend said in an exclusive interview with Transfermarkt. “It's about finding a new routine of the reality of virtual meetings, having a lot of those zoom meetings—a lot of phone calls. The advantage of this is; it's a lot easier to get a hold of everybody … networking with clubs around the world.”

Meeting topics have included getting football back underway in Canada. British Columbia, in particular, has managed the crisis well. By the time of writing, there were 1,948 cases, of which 1,137 had already recovered. The Provincial Health Officer of BC Dr. Bonnie Henry was confident that British Columbians could experience some social activities in the summer.

CPL scouting abroad: The pool in Germany is deep

Discussions on restarting the Canadian Premier League are ongoing but Friend could not go into details. Without football on the horizon, planning has been stressful. For Pacific FC, the most challenging thing has been player recruitment. Transfermarkt has learned that the club were close to signing Hamburger SV striker Julian Ulbricht. A deal was all but lined up before the outbreak of COVID-19 but has been put on hold indefinitely.

“It was not only that player from Hamburg but a couple of others, we had on our list of players that we were trying to bring, a couple of internationals, very exciting young players,” Friend said. “There is no point now trying to progress any of these negotiations and talks just because nobody has the answer on whether international players can come in, and the visa challenge in itself, it is all very difficult at the moment.”

Pacific FC were able to bring in domestic players that should help to fill the void. Among the signings was Marco Bustos, who was among the most exciting players in the Canadian Premier League while playing for Valour FC last season. “We were really early on in identifying who we needed and fortunate enough to be able to sign those guys,” Friend said. “So, we were pretty much done, other than the couple of international spots that we were in the process of filling.”

Communication with the players is one thing; getting them onto to field and game ready is another. In that regard, Friend is closely watching what is happening in Germany, where clubs have been back in training, and the Bundesliga is aiming a restart behind closed doors in May.

Friend views Bundesliga as an example: "It is a good model to follow"

“In general, how they've handled this crisis and the DFL and the Bundesliga, I think they're one step ahead of us as a country as a whole,” Friend said. “I think it's a good model to follow what the Bundesliga is doing so. Certainly, we as a league and myself personally in our club are following what they're doing and what they're doing with their players. From individual training and home training to small group training and then really seeing how they manage it as a league. I think the Bundesliga should be a model for all countries and all leagues.”

When Rob Friend, together with former national team colleague Josh Simpson, established Pacific FC, one of the goals was to develop players for the national team and provide a pathway for a career in one of the world’s more significant leagues, including the Bundesliga.

“For us, it is about finding those kids, and they are there, whether that is here on Vancouver Island or in Ontario, Quebéc. They are out there, absolutely,” Friend said when asked about finding the next Alphonso Davies or Jonathan David. “I think as a league, we can be in a position to find those young players; I have seen them.”

To the comparison of Alphonso Davies & Jonathan David

Friend, in fact, points out that Major League Soccer academies are not always the best pathway for players. “Unless you are a phenom like Phonzie (Davies), but not all of them are,” Friend said. Some players need an extra step before they can make the step to a bigger league; for them, the Canadian Premier League is an ideal place for playing time.

One example is David Norman Jr. The midfielder failed to break into the Vancouver Whitecaps’ first team and was traded to Inter Miami CF last season. Norman was then loaned to Pacific FC, where he excelled, making the most of the playing time.

Market value of David Norman Jr.

Another example is Terran Campbell. The 21-year-old striker had a slow start last season but then exploded in the fall season, scoring nine goals in 18 games. “Campbell is, in my opinion, the most talented Canadian player I have seen,” Friend said when asked about the next Canadian player to make the jump to Germany.

“He's 21, that's, in the world of football that's not young anymore, but that doesn't mean he doesn't have a bright future ahead of him,” Friend said. “Let's, be careful to write off any 20-21-year-old player because I didn't turn pro till 22, you know, Jamie Vardy is another example, there's plenty of examples out there of late bloomers, and the reality is in Canada, many players fall through the cracks.”

Market value of Terran Campbell

Friend on his Bundesliga past: "Gladbach is a special place in my heart"

One big advantage that Pacific FC have over other organizations is the experience that both Friend and Simpson bring to the table. Friend played 95 games in Bundesliga 2 (29 goals) and 50 games in the Bundesliga (10 goals). “That's our recruiting tactic, and advantage, I'd say because now we can sit here and say we've been there we've done that we've got the networks we can speak to clubs in Europe,” Friend said.

But what about his favorite Bundesliga memories? “I scored a couple of times against Hamburg [when I played for Gladbach],” Friend said while laughing. “[Playing for Gladbach] was certainly the best time of my life, getting a club like Borussia Mönchengladbach promoted while being a top scorer in the Bundesliga 2. I was there last year to visit the club, and there were fans that still came up to me and hugged me and said thank you for getting us promoted, thank you for keeping us in the Bundesliga that first couple years. It is a special place in my heart.”

The Bundesliga memories might still be fresh, but Friend struggled a bit when it came to remembering his highest market value. “I don’t know 3 or 4 million euros?” Friend said. “I was a big fan when I was playing because believe it or not, I'm sure you know this, almost all players are always checking their value on Transfermarkt. … I was always on there. But it’s been a while since I looked at what that was.”

He laughs when told that his highest value was €4.5 million. “Well, with inflation, that’s like €10 million now,” Friend said. In today’s market, Friend would be ranked just behind Davies (€45 million) and David (€22.5 million) but ahead of Vancouver Whitecaps striker Lucas Cavallini (€3.5 million).