Keep an eye on: Daniel Arrocha

Name: Daniel Arrocha
19 (09-01-1995)
Position: RB/LB/CB
Club: HB Køge
International Caps:

U18: 5 matches / 0 goals
U17: 2 matches / 0 goals
U16: 1 match / 0 goals

Value: £25.000

This week we keep an eye on yet another Danish talent with an exotic name; Danish/Spanish Daniel Arrocha is this week's keep an eye on talent.

In his younger years, Arrocha played football in BK Frem, one of the traditional Copenhagen football clubs, before he and his family moved to Haslev in Southern Zealand. Suddenly, the daily commute into Copenhagen seemed to long and the defender joined the local club Haslev FC. However, after meeting Herfølge [HB Køge today] in a couple of matches, the defender went for one training and decided to join the 1. Division clubs youth department.

In Herfølge and later HB Køge, Arrocha went through a massive development and played himself onto the Danish U16 national team followed up by spells at the U17's and U18's.

“It has been exciting, both when it was just Herfølge and now when it is HB Køge and the focus is on youth talents. It has been good to play in HB Køge as a youth player and there is a good set-up here," Arrocha says about his youth years in Køge.

“I achieved to make it to the youth national teams, and to get my debut on the 1. Division team. I have found out that I want to become a professional football player and the club has helped me on the way.”

Today, the defender is 19-years old and have more or less gotten a small breakthrough for HB Køges 1. Division team. After starting against Vendsyssel FC last year, the defender has been promoted to the senior squad - despite still being eligible for the U19's - and have played five matches since January. However, he has not played many matches on his favorite position in the center defends.

“I see myself as a center back and I prefer to play in the center defends, but I can play on both backs, as well. However, at the moment I am playing where the manager wants me to play and then I might get more regular position as I make my way into the starting line-up," the all-around defensive player says.

With his breakthrough, in the Danish 1. Division, Arrocha could soon follow other HB Køge talents footstep and join one of the Superliga clubs or go abroad:

“HB Køge is an interesting club because they are willing to give young players a chance, but also because it is a window towards bigger leagues," the talent says.

However, the fans will still see him at SEAS-NVE Park, the home of HB Køge, in the future. His current goal is just to develop and get as much experience as possible.

“HB Køge means a lot to me, but of course I want to try something bigger, but I’m only 19-years old so I am not thinking about the future somewhere else," Arrocha ends the interview.

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Keep an eye on: Marc Rochester Sørensen

By Harbo on 07:31

Name: Marc Rochester Sørensen
Age: 21 (13.12.1992)
Position: Striker
Club: FC Vestsjælland
International caps:

Denmark U20

3 matches / 0 goals

Value: £225.000

After three years playing with his brother Lee, Marc Rochester Sørensen took the next step with a transfer to the Danish Superliga club FC Vestsjælland. This week we keep an eye on the talented attacking player.

Getting his football education in the small club Velo, before playing in the Danish 2. Division for BK Frem Marc Rochester ended up in HB Køge and their U19 squad. However, it didn't take long before the talent was given two friendlies and was promoted to the 1. Division squad. Soon after, his younger brother Lee was also promoted to the senior squad, and together they became a vital part of the squad. Rochester have enjoyed the special bond between his brother and himself, and says it have had an impact on their time in Køge:

"We complement each other; for example we talk a lot about how we can improve and do better for the team. On the pitch, we find eachother easier and know what each of us are going to do next because we are brothers. It was a great advantage when we played together," Rochester Sørensen says.

During his time in Køge Marc Rochester tried both being promoted for the Danish Superliga as well as relegated to the 1. Division. Furthermore, in the week of his Superliga debut against AC Horsens, in 2011, he was also selected for the Danish U20 national team winning the NI Milk Cup. Here, Rochester Sørensen was nominated as the final and the tournaments best player. Despite the success, last summer the talent decided not to extend his stay in the club which he looks back on with joy:

“It was a great experience. When I came to HB Køge, I would never have thought I would play Superliga and 1. Division so soon, but when it happened it was very teaching and developing for me both mentally and as a footballer.

“I needed some new challenges, and I thought FC Vestsjælland sounded interesting. When I talked with the director, Gert [Hansen], he told me about the visions and ambitions. Furthermore, it was a great possibility for a young player as me to play in the Superliga," the striker says.

The break with HB Køge also meant a break with his brother - at least on the pitch. However, the two players still uses each other and exchange experiences and ideas, and hopes to one day play on the same side once again:

“It would be so cool to play with Lee again and have him close to me, so it would be great if he could find his way to me again.”

The two brothers were often compared to each other, but Rochester Sørensen sees some great differences between him and his brother:

“In many aspects, we are much alike, but we are also very different. Lee is the more aggressive player and is a bit more verbal where as I am more the silent type that let’s my feet do the talking.”

The talents new club, FC Vestsjælland, was promoted to the Superliga last summer and spend a great amount of money on new players. Some of them in the high end of the pay scale. Some Danish media was speculating in whether Rochester Sørensen joined Vestsjælland because of the better pay, but the striker denies any talks of money as a motivation. Instead, he joined the club to play on a higher level with some more experienced players as Dennis Sørensen with a past in the German 1. Bundesliga:

“It’s a challenge to compete with players who have played on a higher level, but also great to play with players who knows the game and have been a part of it for many years. It is a positive challenge, but I can also use them off the pitch and use their advices," the talent says.

Vestsjælland are fighting in the lower end of the table, but Rochester Sørensen is sure that his side will stay in the best Danish league when we reach the end of May. Despite being in a rather unknown club, Rochester Sørensen dreams of one day to take the next step and go abroad. A dream will be to put on the red Manchester United shirt; a team he has supported for many years. However, at the moment he is fully focused on helping Vestsjælland for at least the next three years of his contract.

Until further, the talent is satisfied just to watch his dream team on the tele back home. However, having an Arsenal fan as a brother have led to some discussions around the coffee table:

“There have been some fight in the living room, and it have not always been pretty to watch.

“But, I can’t say much when we are at the position as we are now, but I look back on the years when we always won," the Rochester ends.

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Keep an eye on: André Rømer

By Harbo on 00:41

Name: André Rømer
Age: 20 (18.07.1983)
Position: Centre Back
Club: Esbjerg FB
International Caps

Denmark U20

4 matches / 0 goals

Denmark U18

2 matches / 0 goals

Denmark U16

3 matches / 0 goals

Value: £125.000

“We have talked about it for years; how fun it could be if not playing on the same team, then meeting each other." This week we keep an eye on one of the Rømer brothers, André; another talent from the FC Midtjylland academy.

André Rømer was only fifteen when he decided to leave not only his parents and brother, but also his youth club to follow a dream of becoming a professional football player. The talent had the opportunity to move to Brøndby, a nearby club, but the fact that he had to spend time on travelling back and forth as well as two of his teammates was heading to Midtjylland made him chose the FCM Academy. However, the transition from being a star in Køge to becoming one of many talents in Jutland was not easy:

“It is a great upheaval moving from the safe settings home with your parents and being one of the best on your team, to suddenly have to compete for a place in the starting line-up. It was hard for me not playing in the first three to four matches before I managed to get on the team [In Midtjylland],“ Rømer says.

And the centre-back surely managed to get on the youth teams in his new club. In fact, when he thinks about his years at the academy he says: "most of the time it was only going one way, and it was up." But as any other footballers have experienced in the past: What goes up must come down. The talent ran into an injury sending him off the pitch for six months:

"It was almost in the worst period possible as it was just around the time where you would be given a contract or told to find another club.

“I was close to heading home as football wasn’t really working for me at the time," Rømer says.

However, the talent stayed in Midtjylland and convinced the staff that he is worth giving a contract. In the 2012/13 season, he was promoted to the Superliga squad, and the plan was for Rømer to be send on loan in Hobro as many other FCM-talents had been in the past. There was only one problem: Hobro had no intentions of letting the defender play as a regular and instead he agreed with Midtjylland to stay as a reserve for the season. It wasn't until just the last match before the Christmas break Rømer was handed his debut against AC Horsens when he was given the last couple of minutes. So far the talent have played 20 matches, 12 of them this season, but not in the central defends as he has been used to during his youth years:

"Since I was promoted to the senior squad I haven’t played a minute on that position. As it looks now, I will be playing somewhere else in the future.

"I prefer to play on the central midfield where you're a part of everything", the 'all-rounder' says.

While André has been a part of a Superliga club for some years now, his brother Marcel Rømer signed with newly promoted Viborg before this season. The first meeting between the rivals ended in a draw while FCM won in Viborg. This means André has the right to mock his brother; however only Marcel played in the two matches:

“If I say too much he will say ‘I played, and you didn’t’ so I can’t mock him before I play," the FCM talent says.

Rømer started the season with an injury and has more or less been a substitute so far this season. However, he hopes to play more after the Christmas break. He is determined to make a breakthrough in the club, currently leading the Danish league and is willing to stay as a reserve for this season. However, the talent dreams of someday playing in Holland, France, Belgium or the Premier League. However, he can settle with being a profile in the Danish Superliga:

“It is a dream to play abroad, but if I stay in FC Midtjylland I will not be disappointed," Rømer ends.

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Keep an eye on: Lee Rochester Sørensen

By Harbo on 06:24

              Name: Lee Rochester Sørensen

               Age: 18 (30.04.1994)

          Position: Attacking midfield/Attacker

              Club: HB Køge

International caps: Denmark U18: 9 match(es)

                                 4 goal(s)

                    Denmark U17: 5 match(es)

                                 2 goal(s)

Value: £225.000 (transfermarkt.co.uk)

34 matches and 3 goals in the age of 18, that is the statistic for Lee Rochester Sørensen. In 2011, only sixteen years old, he made his debut in the second best league in Denmark, becoming the youngest debutant for HB Køge ever. Only three matches later, he became the youngest goal scorer in the club.

“I’m proud of what I have achieved; however, it does not have a meaning for me. Even though, I am the youngest debutant and the youngest goal scorer, I have to show why and work harder to achieve some more”.

The young talent, who joined HBK from Team Lolland, describes himself as a skilled technician who is “dangerous with the ball and in the box”. In Køge, Rochester Sørensen is team mate with his two years older brother Marc Rochester Sørensen. A situation which the attacker is happy for whenever he needs support. However at times there are disadvantages:

“It is great to play with him on the pitch, as we know each other’s patterns and understand each other well. However, at times we are battling for the same position in the starting line, but there are never any bad feelings.”

Lee Rochester Sørensen had his debut for the Danish U17 national team against England, during the U17 EURO championship. A funny situation for the young Dane, as his father is from England. The Danish team had success at the EURO, and qualified for the World Cup, where they met Brazil, Australia and the Ivory Coast. Even though, Denmark was left with no chance against their opponents during the World Cup, Rochester Sørensen experienced success as he started and scored against Australia. 

Lee Rochester has also had his matches on the U18 national team but is now pushing for a role on the U19 national team. Last week he was gathered with a group of young talents, trying to convince coach Thomas Frank, that he has the potential:

“I am taking one step at a time, and my goal is to be a part of the 18-man squad on the U19, U20 and U21. Then we will have to see, whether or not I will make it from there.”

While Lee Rochester’s father is English and his mother Danish, he also has Jamaican roots. However, the talent has not considered the Jamaican national team.

“I haven’t considered the Jamaican national team at all. However, if I ever should be so good [a footballer] I could play for the English national team, I would consider it. However, the Jamaican could be a possibility.”

At the moment, the attacker is prioritizing his career in HB Køge. However, he has dreams of something bigger than domestic football in Denmark. The biggest dream is to play in Arsenal, as he has been a fan since he was a child. The Arsenal-fan is confident that the Gunners will survive the sale of Robin van Persie and Alex Song:

“Of course, I am sorry that two of the best players from last season are gone. However, if we end in top four this season, I am sure we will be able to bring some better players to the squad”.

Who knows? A new name might be Lee Rochester Sørensen?

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