Steven Petrov
The Paw Print
This is a story that proves that if one is destined for greatness he/she can not escape from it. Keshi Anderson is a 19-year old amateur soccer player who got the opportunity of a lifetime to join Crystal Palace F.C. one of the EPL teams in a very short period of time. Just until 10 days ago this youngster was playing for fun in the 8th division of the English soccer world, playing for a team called Barton Rovers F.C. Keshi has always dreamt of becoming a professional soccer player, but after ending up in a club at such a low division, he slowly lost any “realistic” hopes that one day he could play at the highest level. However, the young player kept on applying for try-outs at different clubs, which brought him an opportunity for a try-out with a team called Brentford F.C. that competes in the 2nd level of English soccer, called Championship. It was by miraculous coincidence that Brentford F.C. had a scrimmage set up with Crystal Palace FC at Crystal Palace’s training facility. Another coincidence that helped Anderson was the fact that at the exact moment when he was put in the game (with only 6 minutes left on the clock), the manager of Crystal Palace’s first team was passing around the training field. Anderson scored 3 goals for the 6 minutes that he was on the field, completely “tearing” apart the defenders. After seeing this incredible performance CP’s manager Alan Pardew offered the young and inexperienced player to join Crystal Palace as their newest signing.
This unbelievable story continued in the same fashion when the young Anderson was given a chance to perform in the U21 squad of Crystal Palace with the reserves, where he impressed everyone with his performance and scored again. The first team manager expressed his first impressions on his newest signing, by telling how talented and inexperienced Anderson is, but that he has also found himself at the best possible place to develop as a professional and try to establish himself as a key player for the team. Pardew pointed out another reason why he will give the young player all the support he needs to develop in the right way, is that Keshi Anderson is going through the really though transition from the amateur level to the highest level of the game, which is exactly how Alan Pardew himself once became a professional soccer player.
Crystal Palace FC faced Lester FC in a game of the 24th round of the English premiere League on Saturday, February 7th where the 19-year old Keshi Anderson was listed as part of the squad. However, Anderson didn’t get a chance to step on the field for that particular game, but the manager said that it is important for Anderson to travel with the team, seeing what it really means to be part of a team that plays in the strongest league in the world. This story shows how a person’s life could dramatically change in less than two weeks in such a good way, and that one should never stop dreaming, because miracles happen only to those who believe.
What’s Been Said…