Adelaide United have had a striker problem for a while now. That has been obvious. It wasn’t always this way, though. From 2010-2012, Adelaide had one of the best strikers in the A-League. His name was Sergio Van Djik, a Dutch-born, Indonesian international who scored 50 goals in 104 games across five years for both Adelaide United and Brisbane Roar respectively. We spoke to the striker about Kosmina, Essien and Adelaide. He’s also still going at the age of 37 for Dutch side VV Pelikaan-S…

What’s your craziest story about John Kosmina? (@Camcastle, Discord)

Every now and then, after a training session, he told us to take off our boots and walk bare-footed over the pitch to “connect with the earth.” You wouldn’t expect that from an old school coach! (laughs.) I didn’t mind that stuff but some players were like “what the f***?”

Be honest, do you still watch the A-League? If so, has the quality improved? (@dweet, Discord)

I watch Adelaide United most of the time. So when they play I try to watch it. Other teams, I don’t really follow. Honestly, I don’t know if the quality has improved, I can’t make a proper judgement because I haven’t seen a lot of the other teams play.

In that case, how do you expect Adelaide to do this season? Are they a title contender?

Maybe not straight away a title contender but more as a team that will fly under the radar and that will grow during the season. I think Verbeek can make a solid team out of the players he has. They might not have really big names but still perform well as a whole!

What’s your favourite thing about Australia?

Hahaha. Everything!! I love the weather, beach, sea and lifestyle. If it was only up to me I was living over there now! But my wife wants to stay close the family, here in the Netherlands. I’ve had my career and I took my family everywhere, so it’s time to also think about them now. But I will be back often to visit friends!

Did you enjoy your time at Adelaide or Brisbane more?

I’ve enjoyed both but Adelaide is more my kind of thing. Not too big, easy-going and right at the beach.

Who was your footballing inspiration and what was your first football memory?

Romario at PSV Eindhoven. He was on fire when I was young and watching football. My dad was also a good player in the national league and he took me and my brother little brother to every game when he was playing we were playing on a side pitch. He also got me interested in football. We even joined the squad on away games and we travelled through the whole country in the team’s bus. So football was always a big thing at our home.

What was it like playing in Indonesia with Micheal Essien? (@dweet, Discord)

A great experience! It was so good to see a world-class player doing his thing day in day out. It gave me the chance to see from up close the exceptional qualities that world-class players have.

What has been the best and worst moment in your career?

The best moment for me is when I won the golden boot at Adelaide United. This boosted my career. Unfortunately, I haven’t won a title with a team so that’s why I choose a personal highlight.

The worst moment was when I tore my ACL in my last season as a professional football player. I know that injuries are always a risk when you’re in this business. I wanted to finish on a high note but it was a silent finish of my career. On the other hand, it happened in my last season and not in the middle of my career, which would’ve been worse!

Which defender did you hate playing against in the A-League?

I didn’t really hate anyone! But Kevin Muscat was one of the hardest to play against he’s really tough and smart as well. Also (Sasa) Ognenovski was difficult to play against.

What was the deal with you joining Adelaide for one Asian Champions League game in 2017? (u/R-i-p-Star, r/Aleague)

I was a free player on Asian passport and didn’t have a problem with not being allowed to play A-League games. And I loved to go back to Australia again.

What’s your favourite pastime? Do you have a TV show you’re into at the moment?

I like to watch Game Of Thrones, unfortunately that one is finished (for now)! When I have the time, I like to go out with family and friends.

And finally, what’s you’re signature dish?

I love a good Argentinian steak!

Brilliant, thanks for chatting!

You’re welcome.

You can follow Serigio Van Djik on Instagram @serginhovandjik.