11-Year Old Union City Soccer Phenom Takes His Skills To Mexico

Ryan Fernandez, an 11-year old soccer player from Union City, is a center attacking midfielder.  Ryan, the son of Union City Public Affairs Commissioner Lucio Fernandez, is an extraordinarily talented player.   He has been playing with Academia de Futbol ATLAS for the past four years.

Upon returning from Mexico, Ryan told Hudson TV, “I wanna say thank you to my parents who are always supporting me in everything I do, always taking me to practices and games, and sacrificing so much for me.  I also wanna thank all my friends, teachers and coaches for always guiding me, and helping me be a little bit better every day.”

It is not beyond the realm of possibility that Ryan will one day participate in the FIFA World Cup, the Olympics or the MLS.  He is that good of a player.

Ryan has been playing for Academia de Futbol ATLAS for the past four years under Coach Carlos Espetia.  At only 11 years old, he should be playing in the U-12 category, but Ryan’s skills and soccer IQ are so advanced that he actually plays two years up in the U-14 category. He is excelling with players much older.

Coach Espetia says, “Ryan is a player with high technical quality. Very good profiles, right and left. His changes of rhythm are excellent. He is very versatile and dynamic. That is very important in football worldwide.  But the most important thing is that he is a young man with a good attitude, and with a lot of intelligence on the field. And that helps him read the game well.  Because he’s so aware and attentive, he reads the plays way in advance.  Ryan is very creative, and with his mental agility and ability to be so dynamic, it helps him to be very thoughtful on the pitch. Ryan is a very intelligent footballer with an extremely bright future.  Mexican soccer scouts look for young players with a lot of technique, who master changes of pace. I believe that Ryan has all the conditions to be a soccer player of the highest caliber, and that he has a good projection at the professional level. I undoubtedly see him playing in our first team.”

Ryan places family and school at the top of his list, but playing international fútbol is his dream. He also enjoys hiking & biking, track, and basketball. He is an avid ping pong player and has won several tournaments. Ryan is a high honors, straight A+ student with perfect attendance at Sara M. Gilmore Academy in Union City.  He loves playing the piano, reading, writing, math, and STEM projects.  He studies Mandarin at school, and German and Spanish on his own. He’s also a Unified Partner with Unified Sports Special Olympics, and although only in sixth grade, he currently trains with the Union City High School Freshman Soccer Team.

Remember the name.  We will undoubtedly be seeing Ryan Fernandez on the world stage in the not to distant future.