esports.gg speaks to Crystal Palace player EthxnH at the ePremier League Finals.
Crystal Palace will face Manchester United in the FC 25 ePremier League Quarter Finals on Saturday, as they look to take one of footballs biggest names out of the competition. esports.gg spoke to Crystal Palace player Ethan "EthxnH" Higgins after the Group Stage concluded last weekend.
EthxnH will find himself going up against the FC team representing the Football Club he supports when the action kicks off on Saturday.
Playing against Man United doesn't mean much for EthxnH
The idea of playing against the club you support would usually be a big moment for a footballer. But, in the ePremier League, EthxnH says that it won't a be special occasion for him.
"I think because it's FC and not real football it doesn't really mean too much for me, it's just about winning whether that was Man United, or Liverpool, or Chelsea or so on. I don't really look at the club, I just look at the people who play for the club. So, the fact that I'm a Man United fan doesn't really bother me too much, it's just about beating them to be honest with you!"
The flip side could instead be to send a message to Manchester United. Catch the attention of the club, perhaps even to represent them next season.
"Truth be told, of course, any opportunity to represent Manchester United would be fantastic but these clubs aren't really too involved. There's no real incentive to go for any Premier League team because truthfully, a lot of the players here will go for the club which is easier to represent.
"So a lot of players will go ah Arsenal is not going to have good players, well let's try and qualify for them. Well Aston Villa's not looking too good this year, let's go and represent them. So until the club really shows an interest to sign you, I don't really feel an affiliation to go and represent them."
Return to the England and the ePremier League
This ePremier League season has marked a return to England, and Crystal Palace, for EthxnH. He represented Palace in the past, but competed abroad in the eLa Liga last season instead. Why was now the right time to return to English competition?
"So truthfully, the clubs around the world are pretty hard to get into. It's very hard to get into contact with the clubs. Some clubs truthfully aren't very interested to actually get involved.
"I got lucky with Spain. It was a great opportunity and I really enjoyed it. I absolutely would want to go back again. However, I wanted to come back to England. I did miss it a little bit when I didn't play. I was seeing my friends, playing the Premier League and I missed it a little bit. These foreign opportunities are also very good, but playing the Premier League is quite fun."
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Is there an affinity with Crystal Palace?
In England, EthxnH has picked up right where he left off representing Crystal Palace. He's competing alongside fellow FUTWIZ temmate Stokes, and the pair know eachother well. Do you build up an affinity with a club after representing them so many times?
"I keep coming back for Palace because one, in the previous I had a really good teammate, Jacob Benskin (NiKSNEB). He was a Palace fan, so I thought if he wanted to team up we've got to go to his favourite team. After all, we can't both go to our favourite teams! So that meant we went to Palace, and I played with him.
"Then after I came back to England this year, Stokes was looking for a teammate and Crystal Palace was avaliable. I thought maybe people won't challenge us. Hopefully it should be an easy run. Fortunately it was. Not many people signed up [for the qualifier], so I got to represent Crystal Palace again."
Does EthxnH feel as close to the club as a traditional Footballer?
After representing Crystal Palace multiple times, does EthxnH feel an the same as someone who is playing traditional football for Crystal Palace?
"Truthfully, from my perspective, I don't think it's anywhere close [to how it feels to be a footballer for Crystal Palace]. I think the actual footballers have a lot harder job than what we do, but from a mental pressure, to be fair, I do think it's a little bit similar. I want to do the best for myself, and on top of that, there's going to be eyes on us because we represent a club like Palace, a really big team. Mentally, the pressures are a little bit similar, but physically and stuff like that, obviously it is very different."
EthxnH and Crystal Palace will need to beat Manchester United on Saturday, March 22 to continue their run for the ePremier League title.
