Personal Statement
I can’t remember a time when I didn’t have a soccer ball at my feet, it seems as if I was born playing the beautiful game and ever since it has been a longstanding love affair.
I am 18 years of age and I can’t imagine a life without soccer. I am a student at Calvin college in Geneva and on track to go to University here.
I have played in teams since the age of 5 and when I was twelve I was fast tracked by the Swiss Football Association into one of the four best teams in Geneva which selects the top 150 players in the region.
After three years that was filtered down to the best 40 of which I am one. It was a`a big moment for me. And now we compete against the best teams in Switzerland. Some of the country’s top players have passed through this system.
I am currently playing for Etoile-Carouge FC, one of the best in this region. I am still classed as a junior but I am one of only three juniors to make it to the senior squad.
There is hope for a professional career but I understand education is important as well and that long after your playing days are over what you take from your years at school and university carry you through the rest of your life. This has been instilled in me by my mother and father who have kept me well grounded and in view of the bigger picture.
I was born in Geneva but I am half Croatian and I guess some of their sporting genes have been passed on to me, a small country with a big sporting heart that has achieved so much, especially in terms of soccer.
The whole family is sporting mad, uncles, cousins, aunts. I have been to two world cups and several Champion’s league finals.
I spend every summer in Croatia where I played nearly every day and where even the basic level of skill from local lads is impressive. I am continually evolving as a player. I am quick, mobile and a have a good engine.
I never give up. Soccer is a challenge and so too is life.
Some say that I am mad wanting to leave Geneva now when I am on the brink of playing at the adults level in the best leagues In the country. But the bigger picture is important and the chance to study in the USA and play soccer has been a dream for me for some time.
It hits two birds with one stone.
Universities are great, there is a wide range of subjects to study and the sporting facilities are second to none. Soccer is evolving in the US as well and it would be nice to be a part of that even for a short time.
