Football: How All Whites midfielder Joe Bell took unusual route the top

Joe Bell in action for New Zealand during the Oceania World Cup qualifiers. Photo / photosport.nz

All Whites midfielder Joe Bell has taken the road less travelled in his football career – and it's a path that has paid big dividends.

In less than three years Bell has become an indispensable member of the national squad, the kind of player who teams are built around.

It's been an impressive ascent, but it hasn't happened by chance. The 22-year-old is often a step ahead on the park, and that kind of thinking has also characterised his off-field moves.

While most aspiring professionals follow the academy-youth team-first team route, hoping to get to the bright lights of Europe as quickly as possible, Bell took a different approach.

He left Wellington as an 18-year-old, after two-and-a-half seasons with the Phoenix academy, taking up a scholarship with the University of Virginia.

Bell did well with the Virginia Cavaliers, attracting interest from professional outfits after his first season and then especially in the wake of the 2019 Under-20 World Cup. On both occasions he resisted the overtures, opting to finish his degree.

He helped the Cavaliers reach the NCAA final for only the second time in their history, scooping several personal awards along the way, before linking with Norwegian first division club Viking Stavanger.

That was a considered move, with other offers on the table, but Stavanger was assessed as a good fit, while Bell was also cognisant of their long-term interest.

Norway was ideal for his development and Bell excelled in his second season, starting every league match he was available for (27) and completing 90 minutes in all but two games.

Across the Eliteserien, only two players bettered his tally of eight assists, as Viking finished third, their best league performance since 2007.

In January Bell moved to Danish champions Brondby, one of the biggest clubs in Scandinavia, for a reported fee of 1.1 million euro ($1.7 million), and has quickly established himself, starting the five matches since the winter break.

"Things went really well," said Bell. "For anyone moving countries it can be a lot but the football side [has] been great."

Being back in the All Whites camp has offered a chance to reflect on his development, since he left Wellington four-and-a-half years ago with football boots and a dream.

"So far, so good," said Bell. "There's obviously many more steps that I hope to take in the future."

"But yeah, it was quite a long-term plan and I worked pretty hard and stayed focused on the steps that I wanted to take. Each step was pretty well thought out.

"So I don't think it's too much of a mistake that I've ended up where I am right now. I've tried to put myself in the best environment and, at the [time] I make the decisions, the place that would be best for me."

Graduating from college football to the professional game is less and less common, certainly since the likes of Ryan Nelsen and Simon Elliott prospered on that path, as prospective players go fulltime at increasingly younger ages, but it's worked for Bell.

"It's been interesting talking to some of the players at Brondby," said Bell. "It's a little bit of an unorthodox way to get there compared to the paths they've taken. [But] it shows there's many ways to get the stages in Europe and that's good for New Zealand players to recognise as well."

Bell will be a key figure for the All Whites as the Oceania World Cup qualifying tournament reaches its climax, with his crisp ability on the ball and work rate and positioning without it.

Knockout football will be a good acid test for this group, after the impressive performances in friendly matches last year.

"We've taken a lot of steps over the past year or so and a big one is consistency," said Bell. "We're building on a project that we saw initially glimpses of in Ireland [in 2019] and then a few more in the Olympics.

"It's building that consistency, where the top play that we're trying to achieve, the focus on having the ball and playing with some true Kiwi spirit. We want to prolong that over 90 minutes and then hopefully throughout an entire tournament."

Meanwhile, fellow midfielder Marko Stamenic is the only injury concern ahead of Monday's semifinal against Tahiti, with the 20-year-old nursing a hamstring strain.

Coach Danny Hay said no risks would be taken, given the final was only three days later, should the All Whites progress.

The team enjoyed ten-pin bowling on Saturday in a rare outing – to break the "cabin fever" of the constant Covid protocols in Doha and freshen up ahead of their big assignment - and are now focused on the challenge.

"It's do-or-die football now," said Hay. "There's no way of trying to dress it up. It's up to us to perform well and to find a way to win.

"There's no second opportunity with this. We need to put our best foot forward but I've got no doubt that the mentality will be very good. We've got the players in a good space and we're expecting a good performance."