Snake Eye

The snake has once again fixated its gaze upon another unsuspecting victim. This time in one of the more modest of leagues, a good thing as well because it allows not the household name yet another over exposed profile but the little guy who has been plugging away in the duldrums of lower league football hoping to one be noticed. My son that day is today no longer will you have to watch the man you play with on the seven o'clock news reaping the benefits of your hardwork while you bearly make the side bar on the back page of the cheap papers. The die has been cast lets see who fate has chosen.

Name: Thomas Buffel

D/O/B: 02/19/1981 (age 28)

Place of Birth: Ruddervoorde, Belgium

Position: Midfielder (Central Attacking Midfielder)

Prefered Foot: Right

Height: 5'9 ft/ inches

Weight: 68kg

National Team: Belgium

Caps: 31

Club Teams: Excelsior Rotterdam (2000-02), Feyenoord Rotterdam (2002-05), Rangers FC (2005-08), Cercle Brugge (2008-present)

The man from Ruddervoorde, definitely worth a google.When I started Snake Eye I wanted it to be random so I could find someone not only you guys didn't know but me as well but I have to ask the question how random is this. If you never heard of Thomas Buffel I guess I have done my job to some extent but the problem is I do know who he is which has me both proud and a bit worried. Pride stemming from the fact I know my Flemish footballers and that I don't just know players that are seen on ESPN, the worrying bit is that I know this man maybe its an indicator that I need a girlfriend or need to get out more but its not about me its about Buffy and now to the business at hand.

Thomas Buffel was born in Ruddervoorde, Belgium on the 19th of Feburary 1981. Thomas grew up in the Dutch speaking region of the nation known as the Flanders just a stone's throw away from the Beligian city of Brugge. Buffel gain his footballing knowledge from within the walls of Cercle Brugge the storied rival of Belgium's most successful team Club Brugge but playing for the city's "number two," did not damper the spirit of young Buffel. In 2000 he was off to the Netherlands to play for Excelsior where he made 63 appearances and fashioned 27 goals for himself in midfield at his two years the Rotterdam based club. Excelsior relationship with Feyenoord is based on a feeder system with Feyenoord being the hungry mouth and Buffel was soon absorbed into the Feyenoord ranks in 2002 where he played alongside the likes of Dirk Kuyt and Lucius. Three years with the Rotterdammers and 34 goals in 90 appearances saw Thomas mature into a sophisticated passer of the ball a quality that attracted the Ibrox faithful and a moved to Scottish football was on the agenda.Soon enough Thomas traded the technical touches of Dutch football for the tough tackling style of Rangers FC and became an immediate success racking up a league and cup double in his first season. Those trophies were the first and last at the Old Firm club, three years past 62 appearances and 11 goals notch and return the "Low country," was destined and Cercle Brugge was the next and final port of call.

Internationaly its all fairly standard for the Gaul 31 caps and a slew of qualifying games both in the Euros and World Cup but with no real meaning, with Belgium not being the force they once were but none the less he is very sturdy in his duties for the "Red Devils," ever since bursting on to the international stage in 2002 in a 1-0 win over Andorra.

Thomas Buffel is a decent player I knew him from his Feyenoord days, his strength does not lie in his shot, passing or reading of the game it comes in his endurance. Buffel covers huge expanses of the pitch a trait I remember from at both Rangers and Feyenoord, he tackles well and has decent vision. Now the cons I am tempted to compare him to Belgium great Marc Wilmots but that would not be fair but for everything Wilmots was Buffel can only half that. Thomas has lost a lot of speed over the years and finds it hard press to maintain a starting place in his latter years. He may not be that well known but he is worth the time to talk about now the world knows.

Reptile