Highlights
- Mateo Ter Meulen Ortíz is a 15-year-old boy with a Dutch father and a Spanish mother who is part of the Sydney FC football team at Endeavour Sports High School.
- Mateo will be the captain of the Australian team that will play in the IberCup in Spain and Portugal.
- His mum introduced him to football and inspired him by highlighting top Spanish players.
This defender and captain of the IberCup Select Australia team, who has played football since the age of five, attends an elite sports school and aspires to play for his mother's favourite team, Barçelona and to emulate legendary player Virgil van Dijk.
According to mum, Natalia Ortíz, Mateo has not stopped playing football since picking up his first ball at the age of five.
Mrs Ortíz said she credited football with helping her son overcome his innate shyness.
She said he hadn’t wanted to take part in any team sports at first and for this reason, he had taken up taekwondo instead.
However, he had become overwhelmed by the constant examinations for the different belts so she turned to football to try and get him excited about the Spanish players and the atmosphere of the major matches, Mrs Ortíz said.
“That's how it was encouraged," she explained.
"He went to play his first game and didn’t want to stop. The cheers of the fans, the camaraderie, the discipline, the desire to improve, the sense of belonging, and much more, is what Mateo loves about football."
Mateo said he believed football in Australia had improved a lot in recent years because more money had been invested in the sport so he did not rule out a professional future with a local team, although his dream is to play for “Barça”.
“It doesn’t matter. As long as I get to a professional level, everything will be fine,” he said.
I want to play for an international team in Europe and I hope to achieve that. With the IberCup, maybe there will be an opportunity to join a team in England, Spain, The Netherlands or Australia.
Mateo said his favourite position was as a defender, which he has played in for years, because it allows him to plan strategies and organise his team’s game.
“What I like most is being able to see the whole field and control (things) from behind,” Mateo said.
As a football player and Barça fan, he said he has always admired Lionel Messi, although lately he has started to follow players in his position on the field.
Mateo Ter Meulen Ortiz plays as a defender. Source: Supplied
“In terms of the player and the person, I like other people a lot more,” he said.
I love Virgil van Dijk very much (because) he is a defender and captain and I play a lot like him.
He confessed that he hadn’t thought much about how difficult it would be to be apart from his family or the great pressure involved in dedicating his life to a professional football career.
The IberCup is one of the most important youth football tournaments in the world with about 20 clubs competing including junior versions of Chelsea and Paris St Germain (PSG).
Mateo Ter Meulen Ortiz in action. Source: Supplied
“To be able to play for Australia and go with friends to an international competition is very exciting... (I’m under) a lot of pressure, but I like it,” Mateo, who was born in San Sebastian and is currently a member of the Fraser Park FC squad, told SBS Spanish.
Mateo's local club, Fraser Park FC. Source: Supplied
