Just before the start of the 2016 season, Liberian international midfielder Eric Weeks ended his seven years of playing his professional soccer career in Indonesia and signed with Malaysia Super League club Perak FA for six months.
The 30-year-old has now completed his time with Perak and has returned to Indonesia where he will feature for top tier club Madura United for the remainder of the 2016 football league season.
Weeks, who plays primarily as a left midfielder, is expected to play a striking role at Madura. He will partner with Madura’s primary striker, Pablo Aracil, who has found it difficult to score this season. Aracil has scored two times from four appearances so far this season.
Madura’s Head Coach Gomes de Oliviera said the signing of Weeks will help his team break through opponents’ defenses.
“Eric was signed not only to help Pablo, but also break the concentration of the opponent’s defense. Moreover, Eric also has individual skills above average. With his ability, he can penetrate and dismantle the opponent’s defense,†de Oliviera said.
Signing Weeks was a last-minute decision by Perak after the Football Association of Malaysia deemed Uzbek midfielder Oybek Kilichev ineligible to play in the Malaysia Super League.
FAM requires foreigners from Asian leagues to come directly from first division clubs while Oybek signed for Perak after making three appearances in the Iranian second division league.
Since Weeks joined Perak, he has been a regular player in Perak’s midfield. He formed a decent partnership with Malaysian Khairil Anuar Zamri in Perak’s midfield, and was sometimes used as a makeshift winger.
Weeks, who is no stranger to Indonesia football, expressed his thanks and gratitude to Perak for giving him the opportunity to play. He described it as one of his best playing time in his career, and suggested that he would return to Malaysia to continue playing.
“Playing in Malaysia was a great experience. I say thanks to the family of Perak that handed me the opportunity to play in Malaysia. The league is good, and I love the country… I will one day want to return to Malaysia to continue playing in the league,†Weeks told The Bush Chicken.
Featured photo courtesy of Eric Weeks
