Know your Azkals: Paul Mulders is a mama’s boy

How many 30-year-olds do you know who still live with their moms? Maybe not a lot, but returning Azkal Paul Mulders is one of them. After sitting out the Kuwait leg due to an injury, he is rejoining the Azkals for their Nepal friendly. Born in Amsterdam, Fil-Dutch Paul is the youngest of Leo and Ofelia Dela Cruz’ three kids. His mom hails from Isabela, Ilagan and went to the Netherlands for work as a nurse. “My parents met at a party," Paul laughs. “They met on the side of the road. My mom’s car didn’t work and my dad was there to help her out. So yeah, just like the movies," he continues. His dad recently passed away so his retired mom now stays with him. “I’m a mama’s boy," the 30-year-old admits. He doesn’t flinch a bit when he says that, basically because he says he owes everything to his parents. “Never pressured to go pro" Aside from being born in the football-crazed Netherlands, Paul credits his elder brother and dad who both played football. When he was young, he remembers watching their games and just wanting to be part of the same exciting sport.

At the age of five, he decided that he was no longer content just being at the sidelines. He tried out for the amateur team A.V.V. Zeeburgia along with 1,500 other kids. The club accepted only 20, and Paul was one of them. While the undeniable gift and unconditional support were there, Paul says that “his dad never pressured him to go pro." He made the choice for himself when he started his senior career in HFC Haarlem. Four clubs later and a switch from his usual winger duty, he now plays as an attacking midfielder or striker for ADO Den Haag. Asked what kind of footballer he is, people say he’s a good runner who has a good overview of the field. Paul’s quick to note though that he’s not the super aggressive type. “I don’t tackle or slide. I play clean," he says. “I try to play clean." Even that discipline could be attributed to his mom and dad whom he says went to all his trainings and matches. “They’d just be there to watch me every time. And they always looked out for me. Like my parents would say, ‘Don’t go clubbing, you have a game tomorrow,’" he shares. Became an Azkal in a week How long did it take for him to retrace his Filipino roots and join the Philippine national football team? Yup, just one week. “Someone linked my Facebook fan page to the Azkal site. Everything happened in one week," he says. That was only his second time to see his mom’s motherland. Back in 2002, he came here to visit his relatives but the possibility of playing for the Azkals didn’t really come across him. Asked if he had to try out, he explains, “I didn’t try out. They saw my CV and my compilations. They gave me a ticket to the Philippines and I flew in." On June 2, he flew in to secure his Filipino passport. Unfortunately, his leg got infected due to a wound he acquired while playing in Sri Lanka. Because of the said infection, he missed games for the Azkals and his club in the UEFA Europa League. He was particularly worried about his teammates’ second round assignment in the 2014 World Cup qualifiers. “Kuwait is stronger than Sri Lanka. They’re aggressive," he says. “But not everything is impossible," he quickly adds. Unfortunately, Kuwait proved to be too good for the Azkals at that time as the nationals fell, 5-1 on aggregate. It’s too hot, but the people are love While Paul complains that it’s too hot in Manila, he has nothing but kinds words for Pinoys. “I’m happy to be here because I saw my relatives again. And the people are really hospitable," he says. Even after just a few weeks, Paul has grown close to his teammates that they have been exchanging emails since he flew back to Europe. Paul says that he actually misses the atmosphere in Manila, especially after the home leg against Sri Lanka where “everybody was really happy cheering them up." That experience, although one in a million in itself, could’ve been one in a billion if he had both parents present. His dad passed away just after the away leg of their Sri Lanka qualifiers. “My dad was always proud of me. He would’ve watched via live streaming if he was alive," he says. “But my mom went to Manila to watch me." For all the good things the Philippines is though, there’s one thing he hates about it: balut. “It stinks! It’s horrible. And there’s a small chicken in it," he says with a face even Van Gogh couldn’t paint. I guess balut is too much of his mom’s heritage even for this mama’s boy. -OMG, GMA News