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HAMTRAMCK, Mich. \u2013 The Lebanese National Soccer Team has just called on Hamtramck F.C. and Purdue University Forward Ali Nasser, kickstarting the young player\u2019s dreams of moving into professional soccer.<\/p>\nBy Simon Albaugh \u2013 Yemeni American News<\/p>\n
HAMTRAMCK, Mich. \u2013 The Lebanese National Soccer Team has just called on Hamtramck F.C. and Purdue University Forward Ali Nasser, kickstarting the young player\u2019s dreams of moving into professional soccer.<\/p>\n
Since Nasser was eight years old, his skilled playing has taken him through the ranks of Michigan\u2019s elite soccer institutions. Moving from travel, to club, to Premier teams and elite University rosters, he\u2019s continued to improve. But for him, none of these are going to be the last destination for his playing.<\/p>\n
Nasser was invited to train with the Lebanese National Soccer Team \u2013 a team composed of 25 of the best players in the country. It\u2019s almost unheard of to be invited to train with the National Team from another country, Nasser says.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought, this is my first real opportunity,\u201d Nasser said. \u201cBecause when you\u2019re playing for a national team, it basically means that there\u2019s the best players in the country on our roster\u2026 So being called up to the Lebanese National Team from a different country, it\u2019s very big.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was a long road here, Nasser tells the Yemeni American News. Training started for him at 5:00am, and didn\u2019t end until 10:00pm. Between efforts, he needed to maintain the life of a high school student while undergoing advanced workouts and soccer practices. This, he says, almost broke him.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s some days I really just wanted to quit,\u201d Nasser said. \u201cI was so tired. But you know, I was just so dedicated and committed. I\u2019m nowhere yet. I haven\u2019t achieved anything I want to achieve in my professional soccer career, but the work now is starting to pay off a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n
To Ali, this isn\u2019t just about the game. It\u2019s a way of life that he\u2019s still learning through, and a continuation of what he thinks should\u2019ve been his father\u2019s legacy.<\/p>\n
At a young age, Ali\u2019s father, Zolfikar Nasser, showed promising signs of a career in professional soccer, even playing professionally in Lebanon. Nasser says that the lack of support led to an early end for his father\u2019s career.<\/p>\n
While his father\u2019s career ended early because of no assistance, Ali says that it\u2019s the help from his family that has allowed him to reach each new level.<\/p>\n
\u201cI tell myself it will be worth it,\u201d Nasser said. \u201cYou know, seeing a big smile on my dad\u2019s face, it just means the world to me. Like, taking a picture with him by my side, and the professional contract in front of me \u2013 that\u2019s my dream.\u201d<\/p>\n
With all the work that Ali has put into soccer, and all the work that he\u2019s promised himself, his goals are far-reaching. Eventually, Nasser hopes to play for one of the elite European teams, or even the highest-ranking American teams.<\/p>\n
Nasser knows that this is going to take more. Even though he\u2019s only finishing his freshman year of college as a business student and athlete, he has his eyes set on the farthest reaches of professional soccer.<\/p>\n
But to get there, he says he needs to do more, make better decisions. Continuing pushing his body and skills past the limits that he\u2019s broken through so many times before. And for that, his mind stays on how he could improve.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know, you reach a point in your college career where everyone\u2019s at a high level,\u201d Nasser said. \u201cEverybody can pass the ball, everybody can shoot the ball. Everybody plays good soccer. But what separates you from the rest? I always ask myself that.\u201d<\/p>\n