Seb Palmer-Houlden has described making his first European start for Motherwell in Freiburg as the highlight of his career so far. The 22-year-old summer signing wants to ensure there are more big moments under manager Alfred Johansson after the Steelmen crashed out of the Conference League.
European debut in Freiburg
Motherwell were eliminated from the competition after a 4-1 defeat in Germany, going down 7-2 on aggregate. Both legs turned on red cards, with Jake Girdwood-Reich sent off in the second leg.
“It is probably the best experienced I have had in my footballing career,” Palmer-Houlden said. “I am 22, playing in the Euro qualifiers in a ground like the Europa Park Stadion was great. Both sets of fans were amazing. It was a night I will remember no matter what.”
The former Dundee loanee could have marked the occasion with a goal, but Freiburg goalkeeper Mia Backhaus made a fine save at 1-1. “It was unfortunate. I tried to go bottom corner and it was a good save. It happens. It was a great ball through from Alex Lowry. It is something we had worked on a bit on training. It is unfortunate that it didn’t go in,” he admitted.
Aggregate defeat and red card
Palmer-Houlden acknowledged the difficulty of the night in Germany. “It was tough. The heat was another level. It was so humid but the boys put in everything. Nobody can fault our effort but Freiburg was the better team on the night,” he said.
“11 v 11 both scorelines were very good. It was 2-2. We shot ourselves a bit in the foot a little bit by going down to 10 men. It is unfortunate but the boys gave absolutely everything.”
The forward praised the travelling support. “The fans were clapping us off at the end. It was a credit to us and them for travelling so far. We had over 1,400 fans here. It just shows the spirit they have for this club,” he added.
Focus shifts to St Mirren
Motherwell now turn their attention to Sunday’s Premiership match away to St Mirren, who have a 100% record this season. Palmer-Houlden stressed the importance of recovery after the European trip.
“We need to try and surprise them and show as much energy as we did on Thursday. The focus has to be on the recovery, resting, refuelling and eating the right things,” he said.
“Our focus is all on Sunday and getting three points at St Mirren. Europe is now done and dusted. It was a good run for the boys. I didn’t play in the first two rounds but all credit to the boys for getting this far. We now look towards Sunday. It was a long journey back, but we will do the right things. We will be ready for the league game.”
Move to Motherwell
Motherwell paid a fee to bring Palmer-Houlden in from Gillingham. He was keen to make the move once Alfred Johansson showed his hand. “There were talks all summer. It never really progressed and then suddenly things switched. I spoke to Alfred Johansson and I was in right away,” he confirmed.
“The way he speaks. He is brilliant and it is a joy to play under him. I will learn so much under him and hopefully score a few goals as well.”
