Personal Statement
My name is Daniel Barir Jensen,
I have grown up in Copenhagen Denmark. My father is Danish and my mother is Israeli. We speak English, Danish and Hebrew and we have always spoken three languages at home. I went to Copenhagen International School until the seventh grade where I switched to a Danish private school in connection with my enrollment in FC Copenhagen Football Academy.
Soccer has been my passion for as long as I can remember. At the age of 12 I was scouted by FC Copenhagen and offered a place at their state of the art academy. We were 12 boys that were enrolled in the same class in a private school right next to the soccer facilities. Everything evolved around soccer with morning and afternoon trainings, games against the best teams in Europe, mental coaching, education on nutrition and game preparation generally. Needless to say it was a highly competitive environment and there was a battle to play every weekend. I loved every moment of it even with the inevitable ups and downs. All of us from the academy have already learned what it means to be a professional, what it takes to stay there and the sacrifices you need to make to succeed at the very highest level.
Being physically a very small player and a somewhat late bloomer physically I decided to switch club to another excellent Copenhagen club B93, known for producing young players, in the summer 2012. I wanted to ensure steady playing time in games and also I wanted to secure and develop a position as a "free" number 10 playing in behind the attacker and enabling me to play on my key strengths, movement and understanding of the game. I am very happy with my move and I have played steadily in the number 10 position on the team as an U18 player at U19 level.
In addition to my club experience I have played friendly games for the Israeli U 16 and U17 national team against local teams and have been attending and been part of the squad but have not yet had any official games. My time with the Israeli National Youth teams has given me some great experience and exposure to a different type of soccer compared to the European stage.
Educationally I have always been top of my class. At Copenhagen International School I was Student of the Year in grade 6 and 7. I finished primary and middle school with a GPA above 4.0 and expect to have a GPA between 3.8 - 4.0 from High School. I am currently in my second year (out of three) in High School and I am attending one of the top 5 High Schools in Denmark. I enjoy studying and academics are important to me. I am striving towards maintaining my excellent academic record and I am therefore primarily targeting top colleges in the US.
