Personal statement

It was the beginning of the soccer season 2017/2018. I was now one of the older guys on the u19 acadamy team for Silkeborg IF. This was the year where I had to prove to the staff, that I was ready to go into our senior team as a full-time professional soccer player. The year before that, I had moved away from my family to live on my own in an apartment and go to a high school near our academy. Both of my parents are teachers, so I have always appreciated the value of education and my competitive spirit has always pushed me to do well in school, but the real reason behind my decision to move was to try and pursuit a career as a professional soccer player. That preseason I did very well, but when it came to our first game of the season, I ended up pulling a muscle in my quadriceps on my last warmup shot. That injury caused me to sit out of training for 6 months. At that time in my life everything seemed like a waste. I’d sacrificed so much just to have a shot at becoming a professional soccer player to then never actually getting the chance to play for a pro contract. That injury eventually leaded to the club losing interest in me. In my 6 months away from training, I spent a lot of time with the club’s physiotherapist. He really motivated me in a time where I was very depressed and had difficulties motivating myself. There was something eye-opening about him showing me everything I still could improve when I wasn’t able to train my soccer skills. How to improve my overall physique, injury prevention exercises and, most importantly, how to train your mindset while dealing with injuries which later also helped me tackle difficulties in life. Once I was fit to play again, I never got the chance to show my worth, but I had learned a very important lesson. The most important thing is always how you can improve yourself. And here I am two years later still trying to pursue a professional soccer career in the US while also planning to major in kinesiology, so I one day can become a physical therapist and help other people with their injuries.