How old were you when you first started playing, who taught you to play and who most influenced your development as a young player?
I started playing when I was five years old. My dad had a huge influence on me and my coach for the Chicago Wind, Bato (Radoncic), who in now coaching with the Chicago Magic.

What's been the single best moment of your soccer career thus far, at any level of competition?
In Frisco, Texas, scoring a last-minute goal, making our team go into overtime and winning and also winning a trip to Germany to play soccer against other countries.

What are your long-term goals in the sport?
My long term goals are to play college soccer at a high level and either before or after that play professional soccer which will fulfill my dream.

What has been the most valuable aspect of being trained by the Academy coaches?
They are experienced coaches that know what to do to train players to get to a high level of soccer.

What has training with the Academy taught you about yourself as a player and where do you need improvement?
It has taught me that there is always someone better than you and that you have to work hard in practices or games because there is always someone who is trying to win your spot. So you always have to bring your 'A' game. I need improvement in being more technical and being focused from the time that we start until we finish.

What is the most difficult part of training with the Academy?
It's hard to grip the fact that practices are sometimes more important than games. Therefore, we slack off.

Does the training differ from past training you've had, and in what way?
On my old team we would have more fitness included in practice and we would play more possession games and I thought that helped our team.

Which of your Academy teammates impresses you the most and why?
Victor Pineda because I can relate to him. He grew up where I'm from and he followed the whole process to the U-17 National Team which was my goal and still is my goal.

Which of the other U-16 or U-18 Academy players impresses you and why?
U-16: Luis Medina because people always think that you need to be a big, tall guy to be good at soccer and Flaco is the complete opposite. He takes big guys on and his vision is what keeps him in the games, even if it's a physical game.
U-18: Marco: When I first started playing Academy, I would always try to stick around the U-18 games just to watch Marco. The way he finishes, the pace he has with the ball and his comfort with it, as well.