BOSTON - Former Northeastern men's soccer players Dante Marini, Harry Swartz, and Moustapha Samb reflect on their paths to the pros.
Samb was a defender for the Huskies (class of 2019) and recently signed with Unión Deportiva Los Barrios which is a Spanish soccer team based Los Barrios, Province of Cádiz, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Before his time in the pros, Samb was a key member of Northeastern's back line, starting in 35 of 36 games for the Huskies. He mentions that one of the greatest parts of transitioning from collegiate to professional play was the idea that your life long passion is now your career. "In college there are so many things you have to worry about such as doing your homework, going to classes, study hall...plus you were living with people who didn't necessarily have the vision or aspirations in life. Now, as a professional soccer player, life is totally different. I have more free time. Soccer is my job and that's all I have to worry about."
Aside from not having to do homework anymore, Samb mentions the sacrifice he made to leave his hometown of Dakar, Senegal, and come play for the Huskies here in Boston. "Never in a million years did I think one day I'd leave my family thousands of miles away and come live in the United States."
Being an athlete at any skill level requires sacrifice. Swartz (class of 2018) spoke very highly about the sacrifices his family made for his professional career when he says, "as a kid playing soccer with my brother in my backyard made me a lot tougher and put a certain mentality in my head. For my dad, he's the one that put the ball at my feet as a baby. He's the reason why I fell in love with the game. He's taught me so much on and off the field, as well as made a lot of sacrifices for me to be able to do what I love." The Needham MA native was recently drafted to New Mexico United after leaving his previous team of Hartford Athletic, both competing in the USL Championship. Swartz made 28 appearances and tallied six goals during his professional campaign thus far.
A fellow USL Championship player, Marini (class of 2014) also mentions his father as his biggest role model. He says, "to see how hard he has worked throughout his life is something I look up to. My dad would fly up on Saturday afternoon for some games at Northeastern, crash on my couch for a couple hours then take the first flight out of Logan back home Sunday morning.That amount of support I had was something I greatly appreciated." Marini recently closed out his seventh season with the Charleston Battery where he serves as a key leader on the team. Just last year he tallied four goals, all match winners, and earned Charleston 12 points in the process.
The one thing these three pros have in common is their endless love for the game of soccer. They each mentioned a personal "secret to success" for a young athlete looking to follow in their footsteps. Samb says, "always stay humble and never ever forget where you came from as well as the people who helped you get here." Swartz mentions, "keep falling in love with not only the game but also the grind. As a kid I loved playing games just as much as anyone else, but I also loved the idea of going to train and get better at something I might not be good at. I just want to become a better player each and everyday I put my cleats on. I don't think that will ever change, I'm still the same kid that fell in love with the game and wants to get better each and every day." Marini says, "be confident and believe in yourself. The mental side of sports is one of the most important and toughest parts about it. If you trust in what you do you will be successful.
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