Aurélien Tchouaméni: Real Madrid star on pressure, fame, playing for the world’s biggest club, Vinícius Jr’s leadership, racism on the pitch, contract talks, NFL influence, overcoming global defeat, France’s 2022 World Cup miss, and his 2026 mindset.

“Playing for Real Madrid, it’s the biggest stage in sports, the pressure is a privilege."- Aurélien Tchouaméni The Pivot goes international! Getting ready for World Cup action, we tapped in with a man who's had success and defeat at the highest level of the sport while juggling all that life brings with it and he sits with us to give an inside-glimpse of what it's like to be apart of the most famous sports franchise in the world! On this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Real Madrid star, Aurélien Tchouaméni opens up like never before about life at the top of world football. The Real Madrid midfielder reflects on what it means to wear one of the heaviest shirts in sports, the constant pressure to perform, and how he’s adapting to sky-high expectations both on and off the pitch. Tchouaméni explains the rollercoaster of highs and lows that come with global success and how he navigates the pressures, never allowing himself to feel the brunt of the boos or carried away with the cheers. He shares experiences of how he manages to stay focused on the pitch despite the noise outside team walls. In a deeply personal and emotional moment, Tchouaméni opens up about the racism experienced, specifically the incident with his teammate Vinícius Júnior and how it affected all of them, but says it was Vini's leadership and voice that guided them through the difficult time, kept them playing when many wanted to walk off...and in a moment of truth, Aurelien reveals those inner discussions his teammates had about that what ifs and the honest reality of racism that exists. The star midfielder also speaks candidly about representing the France national team, the pride that comes with it, and the heartbreak of the 2022 FIFA World Cup Final—including the emotional weight of missing his penalty kick in one of football’s biggest moments. He shares how hard the loss was, being overwhelmed with disappointment but found a way to move forward taking those lessons into every phase of his life, impacting him as a man and the way he approaches the game forever. Tchouaméni dives into current contract talks and what his future could look like in Madrid, while also sharing a more personal side—touching on his relationship, viral moments, maintaining balance, and staying grounded amid global fame. He breaks down the financials of the sport and how it differs from American football, and that most young players start earning thousands to play at ten years old. His excitement for the NFL and studying the history and current players has turned him into an avid fan of American Football, recently spending time with Running Back Bijan Robinson who visited them in Spain as well as exchanged messages with Tom Brady. Looking ahead, Tchouaméni discusses redemption, growth, and his mindset as he prepares for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and what it means to be representing his country. This episode is a raw, insightful conversation about resilience, identity, and what it truly takes to compete at the highest level. Pivot Family, comment, like, hit the subscribe button, we enjoy hearing and learning from you- the good and the bad, we want to know! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:01Speaker 00

  This episode is brought to you by Michelob Ultra. Good times mean competitions between you and your friends. Like seeing who can throw some pigskin the farthest, or rush the field the fastest. Winner gets an ultra. Because it's not just a superior-like beer, it's also giving fans superior access to their favorite sporting events. Superior is worth playing for. Visit michelobultra.com/superioraccess to enter. Enjoy responsibly. Copyright 2026 Anheuser-Busch InBev Michelob Ultra Beer, St. Louis, Missouri.

• 0:30Ryan Clark?

  Welcome to the first football pivot in four years as a podcast. Now, if you've been rocking with us, you know it's not that football, but football. The type of football that Real Madrid's Aurelien Chalminie has become an absolute star playing. The Frenchman of Cameroonian descent is not only a student of his game, but of all game. So much so that Deion Sanders is his favorite American athlete of all time, and he and Bijon Robinson traded dribble techniques on the pitch. Chalminie made a decision at a young age that he'd be a star at this game, and his dad always made sure to push him and let him know that he could be doing a little bit more. It was those conversations that inspired him to take it one step further each time his father challenged him.

• 1:12Ryan Clark?

  So it was from Bordeaux Academy to Monaco, to the biggest soccer club in all of the world, Real Madrid. He shared the pressures of playing there, but also the pride in playing for his country, France. He also took us back to the missed World Cup shootout kick, and sort of what his mindset was in the approach, and the feeling after failing. We talk about Vinny Jr.'s racism incident, and what he feels players could have done to make sure they knew just how egregious this was. And he finally clears the air about the cheating rumors, and tells a story involving his mom and his girlfriend that you don't want to miss. This show has it all. Aurelien talks about how much he loves the athletes' American culture, the swag, the

• 1:56Ryan Clark?

  bravado, the freedom that all of these athletes display on this side. And, to be honest, he showed a little bit of all that during this conversation. So it's finally time, y'all, the pivot goes international with the young Real Madrid star, Aurelien Chalminie.

• 2:32Ryan Clark?

  Okay, we international! How are you? We international! What up, dawg? How you doing, man? How are you?

• 2:39Fred Taylor?

  For sure, good.

• 2:40Ryan Clark?

  My goodness!

• 2:41Speaker 03

  Thanks for having me.

• 2:42Ryan Clark?

  No, man, thank you for being... Aurelien, when was the first time we DM'd? It was...

• 2:47Speaker 03

  I don't even remember. That was probably like 2 years ago?

• 2:50Ryan Clark?

  About 2 years ago.

• 2:51Speaker 03

  Yeah, yeah, 2 years ago. And we're like, no, we have to make it happen. But you know, obviously with the schedule, it's always tough, but we're here now.

• 3:00Ryan Clark?

  We're here now, man. This is Channing Crowder, this is Fred Taylor, Ryan Clark, pivot fam. Thank y'all for pivoting with us. Hey, we going international. Real Madrid, France, whatever you want to say. Cameroonian, we got it all. This is Aurelien Choumini. Is it Choumini, Chowmini?

• 3:15Speaker 03

  Perfectly said.

• 3:15Ryan Clark?

  Yeah, I listened to like 17 different people pronounce it. And they all had accents. And none of them was from New Orleans. So I was like, I know I'm finna mess this up.

• 3:23Speaker 03

  That's a tough one.

• 3:24Channing Crowder?

  I was gonna hit him with the mini.

• 3:26Speaker 03

  That's a tough one, but you did it right.

• 3:27Ryan Clark?

  Yeah. The first thing I want to ask is this, man. Like, we play football. We played American football.

• 3:32Speaker 03

  The real one or the fake one?

• 3:34Ryan Clark?

  We'll say the fake one for you, since you're here today. We always, we always try... I know, it's always, it's good. We try to show love to our guests. But there is a level of fame that football players reach that's different than football players. Right? There's a number of countries you guys can go to where your face is recognizable. The international fame you can gain. How difficult is it to make the adjustment, though, from playing a game you love, for the love of it, to the fame that comes when you get to the biggest stage like you're on now?

• 4:09Speaker 03

  I just have to say that it's part of the package, you know? You know that once you reach like the highest level, obviously you have like good things and bad ones also. Fame is part of it, so I mean, you just gotta embrace it. Because if you're famous, it means that you are burning out, you're doing your thing. So it is what it is.

• 4:30Ryan Clark?

  The criticism too?

• 4:31Speaker 03

  Yeah. I mean, if you don't know nothing, you're never gonna get criticized, you know? So... As I said, you're just gonna embrace it, no matter what they say. Just keep doing your thing, keep grinding. And at the end of the day, I feel like if you do the right things, you're gonna get what you want.

• 4:47Channing Crowder?

  Real Madrid, though, sounds good, all the cute stuff. Yeah, keep playing and all, bro. You play for Real Madrid, the biggest soccer club in the world. At what point, they say pressure's a privilege and all of that stuff. When did you feel the pressure? Or when did you see it? Because as I was looking at videos and, you know, doing research, people were questioning you when you first got there. Then you ballin', and then, oh, he's doing this. Now you win MVPs. When did that pressure of playing for Real Madrid hit you?

• 5:19Speaker 03

  Again, when you play for Real Madrid, biggest stage, you know that there is nothing higher than Real Madrid. Best club in the world, best club in the story of our sport. The scrutiny is crazy, like the level of pressure is something different. You know that everything that you're gonna do, people are gonna talk about it, whether it's good or bad. You know, that's the beautiful thing about it. That's what make Real Madrid so popular. Wherever we go, the fans are going crazy. For instance, I was playing with the national team a few days ago. And so we're in the States, we played in Boston and Washington. And you can tell that the way like they welcome us when you're a Real Madrid player is just different.

• 6:02Speaker 03

  So it shows, you know, how the club, how big the club is. And yeah, the pressure comes with it, the criticizing, like the critic salary, and also the fame.

• 6:15Fred Taylor?

  Right, Channing spoke about the pressures of being a player, playing for Real Madrid. So, quick story, I did a 19-day tour through Spain. And when we got to Madrid, the driver, they showed us your stadium. And they said, "Look, if you wear any other jersey in the stadium other than a jersey of Real Madrid, you could leave in a body bag." That's how intense it gets, you know, when you're visiting other opponents. What's the craziest thing you ever witnessed as a player from the fanbase?

• 6:47Speaker 03

  Okay, I got a good one. So you know, like, Real Madrid has like a contract with BMW. So every player got like his BMW car. And one day, my sister was driving in the city. One guy stopped her because he knew exactly what car I had. Okay, so he thought that I was in the car. So he was like, no, I know that you're like a tremendous family because I know the car. Like, I know you know like the registration plate and everything. And I was like, okay, like we reached another level. That's crazy, that's crazy.

• 7:22Ryan Clark?

  Yeah, when you said that you get treated differently. So like, let's say you're on a trip with your national team. Not everybody on that team plays for Real Madrid. How much separation do you feel in the celebrity that you now possess as opposed to some of those other players?

• 7:40Speaker 03

  So when you play for Real Madrid, no matter, like you can be like a role player. You can be the biggest star in the team. You know that everywhere you go in the world, people are gonna recognize you. So we can go to China, we can go to Australia, United States. We can go to South America. You know that you're gonna find like a Real Madrid, a Real Madrid fan. So yeah, like for example, the Washington stadium. Obviously, we played against Colombia, so they have also a big fan base. But if you look at like all the jerseys, like beside the Colombian jerseys, like the Real Madrid ones were like everywhere, so.

• 8:18Ryan Clark?

  That's crazy. You know, you said growing up that your father was your role model, but you said he wasn't that good at soccer.

• 8:24Speaker 03

  Nah.

• 8:25Ryan Clark?

  So when?

• 8:26Speaker 03

  It's a thing that he was, but he wasn't.

• 8:29Ryan Clark?

  When did you tell your pops? You was like, yeah, pop, like I love you and you the reason I'm here, but you can't mess with me at this.

• 8:37Speaker 03

  So that's the thing when I was little, like I used to like watch him, you know, train with his folks. But at some point, I figured that he wasn't that good. But he was a good role model for me, so I gotta, I gotta give him credit for that.

• 8:51Channing Crowder?

  There's a thing here, like it's always, you know, like there's a. There's levels. You play in middle school, you play in high school, you play in college, you go to the league. I've heard overseas, it's not like that.

• 9:02Speaker 03

  Completely different.

• 9:04Channing Crowder?

  Like, what's the process of being a top soccer player?

• 9:07Speaker 03

  You can become professional at the age of 15, for example, 16. You don't have to go through like the whole college stuff. So basically, you play in a youth team. Me, for example, I was in Bordeaux. And then, if they feel like you have the level to be professional, you sign your first professional contract and you get to the first team. So you can be professional when you turn 16, 15. It doesn't matter like your age. If they feel like you have the level required, you're just gonna do it.

• 9:37Channing Crowder?

  When did you get your first check with your name on it?

• 9:40Speaker 03

  My first check?

• 9:41Channing Crowder?

  The first time you made money off your legs and feet and body?

• 9:45Speaker 03

  I was 13, maybe. Yeah, I was 13. I was in the like pre-academy. They used to like give us like a little something that was probably like five, five grand dollars, something.

• 9:57Ryan Clark?

  I have a question. How does five grand at 13 become a little something?

• 10:03Speaker 03

  A little something now. No, that was a little something for me now. But when I was 13, that was crazy.

• 10:09Channing Crowder?

  Yeah, I was gonna say.

• 10:11Speaker 03

  To me, I was like a billionaire. No, but you know, you know what's the thing? Like, my dad, he called my bank and I had like a limit. So out of the like 500, I couldn't like get like all the money that I wanted. So maybe I could get like 100 per month, you know, because he didn't want me to go crazy. But that was already good.

• 10:31Fred Taylor?

  When did you realize that this could be a career? Like, when did you realize you were very good at soccer, at football?

• 10:39Speaker 03

  Started to play football when I was five. By the age of six, the biggest team in the state wanted to like recruit me. But my parents didn't want to because they wanted me to like enjoy playing with my neighborhood friends and everything. So I only get to the team when I was 12. And I do remember one day... I was not even in the team. I was in like another team. I was maybe 11 and I was in the car with my dad. And I told him, you know dad, like I watched the game yesterday. And that was maybe like a Champions League game. So like the biggest stage, right? And I told him, you know, like when I see like the guys play, I feel like I belong, like I'm gonna, I'm gonna get to that, to that level.

• 11:23Speaker 03

  And my dad, he was like, okay, like you can talk, you can do what you want, you can say like what you want. But at the end of the day, like what you're gonna do. And I was like, okay, bet, you will see, I'm gonna get to that level. I was 11 and yeah, I made it.

• 11:39Ryan Clark?

  Hey, he got real simple. He's like, bet, yeah, I made it.

• 11:42Speaker 03

  Yeah, like my dad challenged me a lot. Like we can have conversation and we can play. I can play like an incredible game. And he was like, okay, that's cool. Like what's next? And helps me a lot because I know that it's not that I gotta prove everybody right, but I gotta prove my dad wrong in a certain way. And I love it because like it pushed me to my limits.

• 12:07Ryan Clark?

  The other thing is too, you know, being a father and having a son who's involved in football, American football, as you call it, the fake football. You're pushing them, but it's not because you don't believe in them. It's because you do, right? Trust me, you aren't proving him wrong. You're proving to him everything he knows about you. And that's why when he feels like there's a little bit more you could give, he's pushing you to give that. You said you were gonna make it, right? And, and on this side, like we don't hear about you guys a lot of times until you become stars, right? That's what happens in America when there's World Cup, when everybody's tuned in and tapped in. When you're on the pitch and you're sharing a picture with guys like Mbappe.

• 12:49Ryan Clark?

  When you first started to get to that level, to be around those stars, what were some of those butterflies like as you were trying to prove yourself?

• 12:59Speaker 03

  I feel like it's a blessing, you know, to be like able to, to play the biggest stage and to play with like the best players in the world. But honestly, like when I'm on the pitch, I don't care. My only like focus is on what I have to do. My task be great and that's it. Obviously, my first game with Real Madrid in the Santiago Bernabeu, probably like the most famous stadium in the world. I was like, okay, like I remembered all the great players, you know, we used to play in. Then the game starts and that's it. Like, let's go, you know? And it helps me, you know, to, as I said, just stay focused on what I have to do. Like, I have to be focused on my task. That's it.

• 13:43Channing Crowder?

  Football, football, soccer conversation. You ain't grow up over here, because the only place that really has big time American football is here. How did you look at football? How did y'all look at football players? Because we don't know a lot about soccer over here. It's starting to get bigger with MLS and all that stuff. And I live in Miami. Messi's there. So it's blowing up now, but when we were kids...

• 14:03Speaker 03

  Yeah, you have a great team over there with Messi. Like, he changed the...

• 14:07Channing Crowder?

  Messi, Luiz, Skets was there, and all them guys. But when we were kids, oh, soccer's something they play over there. We played football over. How did y'all look at football growing up?

• 14:14Speaker 03

  But is it true that in the US, like soccer is considered like as a like rich type of sport, like for rich people?

• 14:22Ryan Clark?

  It's an auxiliary sport.

• 14:23Speaker 03

  Okay.

• 14:24Ryan Clark?

  Because here...

• 14:25Speaker 03

  You don't have access?

• 14:26Ryan Clark?

  Yeah, you don't have the access, but in order to be a part of the better clubs, you have to spend the money.

• 14:32Speaker 03

  Okay.

• 14:32Ryan Clark?

  Right? You have to spend the money to be able to put them in those clubs unless somebody selects them and is willing to pay for it. Those kids have to travel, so if you're a parent, you need to be able to travel with those kids. And so for us, it's easier, we think about our community, for instance. It's easier to give them a basketball, because you can find a hoop anywhere. It's easier to give them a football, because you can find the grass anywhere. Whereas soccer and learning that skill is a little bit different here in the States.

• 14:59Speaker 03

  So football, American football, is not very popular in Europe, especially in France. I don't know why, probably because the games are most of the time late at night.

• 15:09Ryan Clark?

  Yeah.

• 15:10Speaker 03

  You know, people are more like into like basketball and the NBA. But me, honestly, I love football. I used to be like a big, big basketball fan. But ever since I started watching football, like it changed my mind. I love like the mentality that you guys have, you know, on the pitch. Funny story, when I was in the national team two weeks ago, Bijan Robinson... Came to our camp.

• 15:36Ryan Clark?

  Yeah.

• 15:37Speaker 03

  We did like, you know, like little challenges together. So he got introduced to our team. And the guys asked me, they were like, but who like the guy is? I said, you have no idea how great this guy is. But he's like a really good player, you know? But I don't know, they are more into basketball.

• 15:56Ryan Clark?

  So you're a big Wimby fan?

• 15:58Speaker 03

  Yeah, obviously. Wimby is our guy, French guy. He's probably gonna be, I hope, one of the best in the history of the game. But football is becoming more popular. Because you know, now the league makes sure that every year, you know, they play in different countries. We're gonna host the first Paris NFL game this year, the next season. So it's gonna, it's gonna get there.

• 16:24Ryan Clark?

  What drew you to American football, though? What was like sort of your first experiences with it? And what kept you, I guess, sort of consistent in wanting to learn more about the game?

• 16:39Speaker 03

  So honestly, I used to watch like all the Super Bowls, like everybody. But I didn't really understand the rules. So you know, most of the people in Europe, they watch the Super Bowl, but more for maybe the halftime show. But they don't really understand like the rules of the game. And one thing with me, when I do something, I wanna be like the best at it. Or when I watch something, I really understand, I really want to understand like everything. So at some point, I was like, okay, I'm watching football, but I don't really know the rules. I went on, you know, internet to understand a little bit more how it works. I went to a list of the best players of all positions right now, but also in the past.

• 17:22Speaker 03

  Because you watch football, but if you don't know the unsenders, for example, like, you know?

• 17:27Ryan Clark?

  Right.

• 17:28Speaker 03

  So honestly, I've been watching football now very consistently. When I say consistently, like every Sunday, I watch the games for like five to six years now.

• 17:38Ryan Clark?

  Yeah.

• 17:39Speaker 03

  Yeah, yeah.

• 17:40Fred Taylor?

  That's really cool.

• 17:41Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 17:41Fred Taylor?

  That's the beauty of sports though, right? We witnessed, and even in our sport, it connects people from different walks of life. You know, it connects the world globally with the NFL, what they're trying to do with making sure the game is played in other countries. Each and every year, they're playing three, four games internationally. Even soccer, football, is growing here in the States with bringing Messi over, trying to grow the MLS. Women's league, the USL, all these different leagues that are growing because the sport has, you know, immense potential. But you, you're a big fan of Tom Brady, right?

• 18:18Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 18:19Fred Taylor?

  Yeah, you recently played, France played Brazil, in Gillette Stadium, Brady's house.

• 18:23Speaker 03

  That was crazy.

• 18:25Fred Taylor?

  That was my question. What was that experience like to play in the home of Tom Brady? Maybe to even channel some inner Tom Brady to fans accepting you guys there? What was that all like?

• 18:36Speaker 03

  So obviously, we all know that Tom Brady is an icon. So the day before the game, we trained next to the stadium. And I saw the stadium, and I was like, yo, like, as the Gillette Stadium. Like, you know, as a football fan, you know that that's probably like one of the most famous stadiums in the sport. The day of the game, I was on the pitch because, you know, like in soccer, before, before the game, you can go on the pitch to see like how the grass is and, you know, to feel the atmosphere a little bit. So I sent him a picture on Instagram, and he was like, yeah, a lot of winds, you know. The stadium. But yeah, that was crazy even to play in the Washington Commander Stadium.

• 19:19Speaker 03

  Last year for the Club World Cup, we got the chance to play in the Lincoln Financial Field and Oslo Stadium. And that was, that was great. That's a blessing, definitely.

• 19:29Fred Taylor?

  Did you get a chance to see his statue, Brady's statue?

• 19:31Speaker 03

  No, I didn't. I didn't, but.

• 19:35Speaker 03

  No, I don't know if we're gonna play. No, we're gonna have another game in Boston for the World Cup, so I might, I might ask the driver to stop to get some pictures.

• 19:44Ryan Clark?

  That statue, that one is huge. He deserved it. Yeah. They need to name the stadium after him.

• 19:50Channing Crowder?

  You call it the pitch, because we call it the field, but it's pitch inside. Are the pitches different? Because I played in the first NFL international game in 08, and we played at Wembley.

• 20:02Speaker 03

  OK.

• 20:03Channing Crowder?

  It was different grass. It's different than playing on football grass, American football grass to football grass. Is it different coming over here and moving around?

• 20:12Speaker 03

  Definitely, because for our sport, the grass is so important. Like, the grass quality is so important. Like, our game in Boston, the pitch was not that, like, the grass was not really, like, good quality, and it affects our game. For you guys, it doesn't really matter, you know? But for us, it's, like, really, really important. So that's why most of the time when we play in the US, like, the grass is so different that you literally have to adjust.

• 20:38Ryan Clark?

  Yeah, I mean, like, we would go out, you change your cleats if the weather was different. But the one thing we always looked at was like, shoot, everybody gotta play on it.

• 20:46Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 20:46Ryan Clark?

  Right, so everyone has to adjust. You have an even field. Obviously, in America, where our society is, you do deal with certain levels of racism. Right, and it's gone from what was once veiled to being more in your face. Recently, Vinny was faced with being called a monkey on the pitch. How much conversation did you all have about that experience and moving forward with it amongst yourself?

• 21:15Speaker 03

  It's definitely hurtful, because we know what happened with Vinny, but at the end of the day, like, we are all black folks, so if the guy says something to Vinny, he says something to me, he says something to all the black people, you know, in the sport and in the community. But when you're on the pitch, it's really difficult, like, to, like, process it and to realize what's going on. But at some point, I feel like we did a great job, like, talking all together on the pitch to know, like, what we wanted to do. And Vinny was literally like, OK, we're gonna keep playing, because at the end of the day, like, we have a job to do, but after, we have something to say about it. And we definitely have to improve in the fact that...

• 21:59Speaker 03

  It happened, was like probably like two months ago. And then what, what's the like, what's the next step? So I feel like the instance are trying to like to figure it out, you know, and to help the players to feel more comfortable. I feel like the next move will be like to stop playing, you know? Like I would say that as a Real Madrid team in the Champions League, the biggest stage, if we had stopped playing that game, that would have been crazy. And we won the game, okay, but every time I'm like, like what if? What if we had done it, you know? And maybe this is what we like, what we need, you know,

• 22:42Speaker 03

  to to help, you know, the instances, the leagues and everybody to figure out. Because as I said, it happened, it happened in the past, it's gonna happen again. But it's just gonna stay the same, you know?

• 22:55Ryan Clark?

  When it happens, like you said, when it happens in the moment, it's hard to process what's the next step, right? There's obviously hurt, there's anger. There's a way that you want to address it even physically sometimes, and you know you can't do that. I think to say though, looking back, maybe you have to stop playing the game so people can understand how hurtful that is. Is that a conversation you guys have had?

• 23:23Speaker 03

  Yeah, definitely. Because honestly, that day on the pitch, we were like, should we continue? Or just go back to the locker room? And Vinny was like, no, it's okay, guys, let's just, you know, finish. But maybe we should have done it. Because as I said, it would have went crazy and maybe we would have just a tiny bit.

• 23:44Channing Crowder?

  Is that a big problem? Or is it, because you could have that one dude that's just talking crazy? Or that group of people that's just nasty and racist people?

• 23:52Speaker 03

  That was one dude, yeah.

• 23:53Channing Crowder?

  Yeah, you could have that one person. But is it a problem in soccer? Because you said it happened in the past and you said it's what happened.

• 23:59Speaker 03

  It's always a problem and it's always been a problem. But the biggest problem is that. I feel like we don't like, like we're not improving, like it keeps happening. You know, I don't know if we have to change the mentalities, if we have to like set a new rule, but something has to, has to be, has to be made.

• 24:22Fred Taylor?

  Yeah, no, it's, it's not just soccer. I mean, it's all sports, basketball, it happens, people are.

• 24:28Speaker 03

  But does it, like, does it happen in football?

• 24:31Fred Taylor?

  Football, DK Metcalf situation, right?

• 24:33Speaker 03

  Oh, yeah.

• 24:34Fred Taylor?

  Went up in the stadium, someone called him, you know, a certain name, whatever, it, it happens.

• 24:39Speaker 03

  But he got punished, I mean.

• 24:40Ryan Clark?

  Yeah, well, I will say this too, the, I think the difference in, in football is these players who are from different backgrounds, different descents, you grow up together.

• 24:52Fred Taylor?

  Right.

• 24:53Ryan Clark?

  Right? Like Tom Brady playing with Ty Law and Richard Seymour and Fred Taylor and Corey Dillon and Randy Moss. Tom Brady had done that his whole, his whole life. If you're in those locker room, those are the people you grow with and you learn with. I think it's a different thing, especially for you guys, because when you play internationally, it's not just the color of the skin, it's the actual background, right? The ethnicity, the, the country that you're from. And I do believe that can bring on a different sense of racism, a different sense of superiority. So I can see how that for you guys could be even more intense than what we deal with here in the, in your face disrespect.

• 25:37Fred Taylor?

  Yeah, like RC was saying, it's more player to player versus player to, to fan in our sport. Take us back to 2022, France's run to the, to the World Cup.

• 25:48Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 25:48Fred Taylor?

  What did that run teach you? Obviously, you guys were this close to, to winning it all and being world champion. What did that moment, that, that run that year teach you? And how did it prepare you all for this year's World Cup?

• 26:03Speaker 03

  I felt like the 2022 World Cup was a blessing, especially for me because I learned so much. I do remember before the competition, I mean, I was not supposed to start because other guys like Paul Pogba and Golo Kante were already established as, you know, like leaders of the team. They got injured maybe two or three months before the competition, so we had to start, you know? I had to start and it helped me, you know, to become a better player, to understand what it means, you know, to play a World Cup game. It's probably for you guys, you know, playoff game is different than a regular season game. You know, with the level of scrutiny, now you play for your country. It's not just your club, your team, it's for your country.

• 26:48Speaker 03

  So, you know, it's definitely bigger. And then, yeah, we got to the final, probably like the craziest final ever.

• 26:56Ryan Clark?

  Yeah.

• 26:57Speaker 03

  Then penalty shootout. I missed my penalty, another guy too, and we came up short. Went back home with nothing, no trophy, and it hurts, definitely, you know, even now when I think about it. But at the same time, I was only 22, so, you know, my generation were probably gonna be like, okay, our first World Cup, we made it to the final. So it's not that we take it for granted, but we're like, okay, next one we have to win, you know? And we never know what the future holds, you know, for us, but it definitely shaped me in a certain way.

• 27:36Ryan Clark?

  Can you take me through the process and the mindset, the way that you approach a penalty kick? Because I can only equate it to basketball. When a guy's at the free throw line, game on the line, you shooting a one-on-one, right? And you know you gotta hit this shot.

• 27:54Speaker 03

  Or the kicker.

• 27:55Ryan Clark?

  Or the kicker at the end of the game. Can you take me to the mindset of when you're in that position, in the World Cup, a 22-year-old, young player, and you know what that moment represents?

• 28:07Speaker 03

  So, I love responsibilities. So, at the end of the game, I was like, okay, I gotta take my chance, penalty, I'ma go. 22 years old or not, feel like I belong, you know? So, honestly, you just don't wanna think about nothing. You just wanna pick a side. But I do remember that when I was literally like in front of the goal and the goalkeeper, I was like, yo, like that's crazy. And I do remember that when I was little, my mom used to be like, oh, but like in a like situation, she was like, okay, calm down. This is not like the final of the World Cup like. And I was literally playing the final of the of the World Cup.

• 28:51Speaker 03

  At that time, so it was like, okay, I gotta pick a side. I completely like fucked up, honestly, like I have to say it. And then I waited for, you know, like the end of the the penalty shootout. And as I said, we lost, came up short, went back to the hotel with all the families. And you feel guilty in a certain way. But at the same time, I was like, it's part of my journey. The end of my career, I'm gonna remember that moment. And it is what it is. There was nothing that you can do about it. You can't control it. So just move forward.

• 29:25Channing Crowder?

  You decide right then? You don't know in advance, you don't know if we go to penalties, I'm gonna go left upper 90. You decide when you're standing there looking at the ball?

• 29:34Speaker 03

  Yeah, literally, literally. Because like the difference between like a penalty, for example, and like a field goal, like the field goal, it depends on like you, you know? It's just you. Like the penalty, you have the goalkeeper. So you can like shoot the best penalty, but if the goalkeeper save it, like you're done, you know? So pick the side, as I said, mess that up and yeah.

• 29:57Fred Taylor?

  In football, we do so much film. We're overloaded with analytics, data, all that different stuff. And we sort of, everything's sort of scripted. Not for the gamblers out there. It's not scripted in that way. Because people send and run with stuff. But we have to really prepare and watch film and, you know, kind of get familiar with the player. How much of that is involved in soccer? Versus how much of it is just improvising throughout the the course of the game?

• 30:24Speaker 03

  So the difference between your league and our league is that?

• 30:29Speaker 03

  Most of the time in your football, if you don't show up,

• 30:35Speaker 03

  you're gonna get your ass kicked.

• 30:36Fred Taylor?

  Yeah.

• 30:37Speaker 03

  Simple as that. You can play against a 1-10 team. If you don't, like, you know, do everything that you have to do to win, you're gonna lose. In soccer, still the same, but I will say that the individual quality, like, can help a team to win. So you can play against a bad team, and with the quality that you have, you're still gonna win, even though it can happen that, also, like, the team in front of you, like, your opponents, they're bowling out this day and you lose, but, I will say that that's the difference.

• 31:11Fred Taylor?

  So it's talent, like, how much talent you have on the team.

• 31:15Speaker 03

  Talent. I was talking about it last day with Vision, and I was like, like, for you guys, it's so difficult, especially him as a running back. You depend so much on the other players of your team, especially the O-line. For us, it's different, you know. I always say that football is a collective sport, but it's also so individual. Like, you can't make the difference by yourself.

• 31:39Fred Taylor?

  Right.

• 31:40Speaker 03

  In your sport, it's more difficult.

• 31:43Ryan Clark?

  Football, the, you know, non-American style, has a more basketball feel to it. Like, if you are a superstar player, you can change what happens on the pitch. I want to read you some headlines that are trending right now. Aurelien, untouchable. Real Madrid looks to extend contract to 2031. Aurelien, ready to get locked down. Real Madrid looks to secure the future with Aurelien. And these are all things that are going on right now. Like, when your name is trending with what you've accomplished and the way your club looks at you, what are those contract talks like? Because we only know how we negotiate within the NFL.

• 32:27Ryan Clark?

  We don't know what it's like to be on... In the biggest club in the world's greatest football league.

• 32:34Speaker 03

  So the difference is that you guys, you sign your contract, guaranteed contract, and then if you wanna like trade a player, you have like draft picks or another player, whatever. For us, it's based on what you do on the pitch, you're gonna have a certain value, talking millions. And let's say, one player is playing for Real Madrid, another team, PSG, want the player, you call the Real Madrid owner, and you tell him, okay, listen, I got 200 millions for you, for the player. Is it enough for you? And if the player wants to join the team and the team is okay with the 200 millions, you move. That's the thing. You only have two transfer window, one in the winter and one in the

• 33:18Speaker 03

  summer. But yeah, it's basically how it works.

• 33:21Ryan Clark?

  Your transfer number was high.

• 33:23Speaker 03

  Yeah, pretty high.

• 33:26Ryan Clark?

  Pretty damn high to become a part of Real Madrid. And you know, we always talk about what money says. Money says how much they value you, just to be honest.

• 33:34Speaker 03

  Definitely.

• 33:35Ryan Clark?

  Period. Like, that's how we say how we see you. Was there an added amount of pressure because of that when you moved over? Because it seemed like there was so much criticism on your initial play because people saw that number so high.

• 33:51Speaker 03

  So that's the thing. Like, for me, I feel like, you know, some people, they didn't really know like how to evaluate the way I play, you know? There are certain stuff that, like, to see and to acknowledge it, you really have like to know the game and to pay attention to the little details. I'm not a striker, I'm not gonna score three goals per game, but the little stuff that I do, I feel like I'm so valuable for the team. And I struggled a little bit in the beginning because, as I said, like, you want people to talk good about you. You don't wanna get criticized. You want at the end

• 34:31Speaker 03

  of each game, people to be like, oh, he bowled out. But I understood that I don't have to be driven by what people say, but by what I think about my game, what the people around me, my teammates, my coaches, the coaching staff. And then if they are happy with what I do, it's the most important. And at some point... It's gonna change and people are gonna talk in a good way. Like right now, for example, yeah, as you said, like everybody is talking about me, the way I play. But like one year ago or two years ago, I was a bad player. I got booed in the stadium. So many stuff happened, so I felt like I've been through a lot and it definitely helped me mentally.

• 35:13Speaker 03

  Because now I know that no matter what I do, people are gonna talk their talk. So just don't pay attention to it.

• 35:21Channing Crowder?

  And you talk about how like a running back needs an old line. What about your line mates that you play with? How much easier does the midfielders and the defense you have behind you? That can let you play your game, like having those good guys let you play your game more?

• 35:35Speaker 03

  Sure, yeah, you definitely rely on each other. When you play in a double pivot, the other number six, you know, is really important for you. Because let's say if you wanna be more, like if you want to be more offensive, like he has to, you know, step back a little bit and vice versa. So it's like a duo, like the linebacker, you know, like you're the teammate. You know, it's so important, you know, to be on the same, on the same page and yeah.

• 36:05Fred Taylor?

  This question is outside of sports, has nothing to do with sports at all. What's in your McDonald's fries in Paris? Cause Americans go crazy.

• 36:14Speaker 03

  They so much better.

• 36:15Fred Taylor?

  Americans go crazy for the fried McDonald's fries. Do y'all do the same when y'all visit over here?

• 36:21Speaker 03

  Like ordering like McDonald's?

• 36:22Fred Taylor?

  Like Americans will go to McDonald's and post it all over their social media and just go crazy for McDonald's in like Paris.

• 36:31Speaker 03

  I'm a Chick-fil-A fan.

• 36:32Fred Taylor?

  Oh, you're Chick-fil-A, okay.

• 36:33Speaker 03

  I'm a Chick-fil-A fan. Honestly, like to me, like McDonald's here in the US is not that good. Like compared to the one in Europe, like it's completely different.

• 36:42Fred Taylor?

  Correct.

• 36:43Speaker 03

  But the fries, like the McDonald's fries are like the best in the world, best in the business, like no doubt.

• 36:49Fred Taylor?

  And the other question is, what we doing next year for our birthday? We share the same birthday.

• 36:53Speaker 03

  Shut up. Oh, January 27th.

• 36:54Fred Taylor?

  Yes, sir.

• 36:55Speaker 03

  That's bleeding. That's dope.

• 36:59Fred Taylor?

  I turn 50 this year.

• 37:01Speaker 03

  I turned 51 this year.

• 37:03Ryan Clark?

  Half of that, 20, 20 things. Y'all gonna turn up for sure.

• 37:08Speaker 03

  I'm gonna do something.

• 37:09Ryan Clark?

  You know, like with where you are right now and still being extremely young, to hear the things about the way Real Madrid looks at you, some of the things that you have gone through to get to this point. How difficult was it being booed? We don't feel like we get that individual criticism that they're going to boo you specific. Right? Like I've never experienced that. I've also never been at the height that you are, representing my country, playing for the biggest club in the world. What was it like to have to process that part of your journey?

• 37:47Speaker 03

  That was a really important moment in my life and in my football career for sure. So I was in a tough situation. And at that time, I was not really playing in my position because like the centre backs in our team were injured. So I had to play, you know, centre back. And I struggled because that was not my position. I just tried to help the team, but also like I gotta take accountability. Like when I was playing in my position, I was not playing like really, really good. I was okay, but I could have done better. We had a game, got to the stadium. We got smashed the day before, but the week before by Barcelona, you know, in the final.

• 38:29Speaker 03

  So I knew that, you know, I would be like scapegoated a little bit. Got to the stadium, first 10, 20 minutes, every touch is of mine. The whole stadium is booing me. And at first I didn't really understand and then I was like, is it like, is it me? You have two options. It's either like it kills you or you're like, okay, like it is what it is. Let's see like what I can control and the only thing that I can control is my performance. And I played a really, really good game, you know, that day. And at the end of the, at the end of the game, you know, people applauded and everything. So, but definitely the day after I thought about it and I was like, okay.

• 39:12Speaker 03

  It is what it is, but people are gonna talk their talk, do what they wanna do, but I don't, like, I can't give them the opportunity, you know, to boo me. So, what I can do is, you know, work even harder and be the best version of myself.

• 39:27Ryan Clark?

  You're a huge note taker, I've heard. I'm a big note guy. I got electronic notebooks, I got regular notebooks, I type in my notes in my phone. I was that way as a player, right? It was, if you told it to me and I typed it or I wrote it, I remembered it, right? And in remembering it, I could execute it. With you being a huge note taker and learning that young, how do you use those things to help you, whether it's psychologically, whether it's from a technique standpoint, a tactical standpoint? When you're taking those notes, what is your process of comprehending that information?

• 40:07Speaker 03

  So, to me, mental is a big part of my game. So, I figured like, at the earliest, like, very early in my life, that I needed like to understand, you know, how like the brain works and how I can get better mentally. And to me, you can always train it, you know? So, right now, I'm working with Chad, Chad Boling, that maybe you guys, I think you know him, right? That's my guy. Yeah? So, every, every time that we link up and talk to each other, you know, I write what he says because me, I prefer to read stuff, you know, and it gonna, like, it's gonna help me to, to remind it. And, yeah, mental is like so important.

• 40:52Speaker 03

  I know that right now, one thing I'm really better at is like control what I can control. So, just focusing on, you know, what I can do on the pitch and the rest of it, the medias, what people are gonna say, what you just say with like the contracts, talk and everything. I can't control it, you know, so it helped me to really like calm down a little bit and focus on my thing.

• 41:16Ryan Clark?

  That's awesome.

• 41:17Channing Crowder?

  Speaking of like calming down, is it advantageous to play soccer mad? Cause when the people were booing you every time you touched the ball, you could have got mad. But in American football, anger sometimes, because we get to hit each other.

• 41:30Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 41:30Channing Crowder?

  Is it a disadvantage or an advantage if you play soccer mad?

• 41:34Speaker 03

  It depends on the individuals. As I said, like I watch a lot of football games and I can tell that you guys like you have like to hype yourself up and you know, to, to, to be ready for the game. To be like mad in a certain way or not. Me, I figured that I have to be super calm before a game. I was watching the Mike Aperson's podcast and he was talking about the way he approached the game. I think George Pickens said that he used to watch like food video. And then I was like, okay, maybe it's gonna work. So I changed my whole like music playlist, you know, of like my pregame playlist.

• 42:13Speaker 03

  And now before the game, I only like listen to like classic music, like R and B, not like rap. You know, I, I have to be like very calm. And then when I start the game, I'm ready to go.

• 42:28Ryan Clark?

  I did that too. I had, I had playlists and I would always start, cause I played on Sundays a lot with gospel. And I would have gospel, then I have like some R and B, some rock, some pop. And it would build up and it was, you know, one song I always listened to before the game, because it was kind of a tribute to a friend of mine that passed. But yeah, I was the same way. I couldn't get too hype because like the adrenaline would get going. And then once you punch somebody in the mouth, it don't matter then anyway.

• 42:54Channing Crowder?

  Yeah, crazy.

• 42:55Ryan Clark?

  You know, say you gotta get, I know you, your playlist is probably raggedy.

• 42:59Channing Crowder?

  Geez, Z T I, I woke up pissin' fire.

• 43:03Speaker 03

  I can't do that. On a daily basis, yeah, but before the game, no, I can't do that no more.

• 43:07Ryan Clark?

  With World Cup coming here to America and you being a football fan, and some of the stadiums and some of the places you'll get to play, how much excitement is it around these upcoming games?

• 43:20Speaker 03

  Like, super dope, like, for me to get the chance to play a World Cup in the US, it's a blessing. When we played in Boston, like, the whole Boston Celtics crew was, like, crowd-side before the game, and I was like, "Yeah, that's dope," you know, like, the thoughts that you like, you know, for what they do. Now, they're watching what you're doing, you know, on the pitch. So, yeah, for us, it's gonna be, it's gonna be good, like, you know, with the expectations and everything that comes with it, but it's definitely gonna be, gonna be something great.

• 43:52Channing Crowder?

  And coming to the US, you're a, over here, you're a black dude. How is it with the American black culture to the European black culture? And now, you're intertwining that, now being in the US more, you wearing the ones, you know what I'm saying? Like, how is that coming from how you grew up to now getting into, if you wanna call it, the hip-hop culture of America?

• 44:15Speaker 03

  So, the thing is that I feel like more and more, like, the American culture, you know, is also like in the European culture. So, you know, people, like, you know, they always, like, look and watch what's going on in the US. So, I feel like now it's coming, you know, a little bit more, so with, like, the mentality, the black culture, everything that you guys do. And that's why, for example, football is becoming more popular, basketball, definitely, rap US, you know, American music, so, yeah, it's good.

• 44:51Ryan Clark?

  It doesn't happen in football a lot, American football. It happens in your football, in European football, that the couples and the celebrity of the players and who they're dating becomes...

• 45:06Ryan Clark?

  Almost like social media reality shows. We don't get that. You know, Dak Prescott dealt with it a little bit because he's the quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys. We've seen Tom Brady deal with it because he dates famously Travis Kelsey because he's with Taylor Swift. Nobody cares who the linebacker of the New York Giants are dating. And you recently had to deal with some public things where you had to speak up. Looking at you right now, man, you look so young to me. How hard is, man, that celebrity where people are now picking apart your relationship so much where you gotta come out and say nah, man? Like, that's not what's going on.

• 45:43Speaker 03

  It's definitely tough to handle it, but we're learning every single day. Nobody's teaching us like how it works, you know? But as I said, you know, your first question, I told you like with the fame, the scrutiny, like it comes with it. It's part of the package. As a Real Madrid player, you're dating someone, everybody wants to know what's going on. They are making stuff up like it happened, you know, a few weeks ago. It's definitely not funny, but at the end of the day, as I said, it's part of our life. There is nothing that we can do about it, so it is.

• 46:18Ryan Clark?

  I hate that though, man.

• 46:20Channing Crowder?

  I know, but I just gotta give him some, I gotta give him his credit now because I saw that story too.

• 46:24Speaker 03

  That was crazy. You know, you know what happened? I was literally like, I was playing video games and my girlfriend was at home, my mom too, and my uncle. And they were eating and my agent called me. He was like, look, someone just sent me like the tweet, right?

• 46:43Speaker 03

  So I stopped playing, obviously, I was watching, I was like. So then I called my mom and my girlfriend and I was like, look, you see what's going on?

• 46:52Channing Crowder?

  You see what you did?

• 46:54Speaker 03

  You see, you see what you did? So, my mom was pissed off, honestly. My girlfriend, she didn't care because, I mean, now she understand like how it works, you know? But my mom was pissed off. And usually, like, I don't address it. I don't have to because, you know, people like, they loved like drama to...

• 47:12Ryan Clark?

  Well, what made you address it this time?

• 47:14Speaker 03

  Because that was like, that was viral. Like, everybody sent me like, you know, the like the tweet. So I was like, no, I gotta say something because I understand that, you know, I can let it go, but nah, like, this is serious. And we had the game the following day. And they were, they were literally saying that because of what happened, I'm not gonna play the game the following day. And the thing that, you know, made me like post something was like my teammates, like they were calling me to know like what's up. So I was like, okay, it's getting serious. Gotta address it, you know, shut the noise and, yeah.

• 47:49Fred Taylor?

  Well, you did well, young man. I just, I saw some pictures.

• 47:56Ryan Clark?

  I knew you was there.

• 47:59Ryan Clark?

  You watched the show enough.

• 48:00Speaker 03

  Yeah, I know.

• 48:01Ryan Clark?

  You knew that was coming.

• 48:02Speaker 03

  But I love it, I love it. Thank you, I appreciate it.

• 48:05Fred Taylor?

  In moments like this, though, you mentioned, you mentioned your mom. You mentioned your dad earlier as it pertains to the sport itself and how he helped guide you. But I want to ask you about support system. Your mom, her role and what she means to you throughout this journey.

• 48:19Speaker 03

  My mom means the world to me, you know?

• 48:23Speaker 03

  When I was younger, she used to tell me, "I don't really care about what you're gonna do in life. I know and I want you to be successful. I just want to be like the best at what you do. So, you can do a chef, you can go doctor, whatever you want, but try to be the best." And it helped me a lot, you know? So I definitely gotta give her props for that. And even, even now, you know, she always make sure, you know, that I'm good. When things are not going well, she's gonna come over, you know, and, and cook for me sometimes and, and yeah, make sure that her, her son is, is doing good. And I definitely got, you know, a really good support system

• 49:08Speaker 03

  from, from my, my close ones and I'm grateful for it.

• 49:12Ryan Clark?

  You know, there're gonna be people who watch this show because of our following, who've never heard of you.

• 49:19Speaker 03

  Am I the first soccer player on the show?

• 49:21Ryan Clark?

  Yes.

• 49:22Speaker 03

  It's important.

• 49:23Ryan Clark?

  I mean, honestly, you deserve to be. Like I said, from the fact that you reached out years ago and you was like, hey, man, I really rock with y'all. And I remember calling our producer and being like, we gotta get him on the show. And she went to research, she's like, yeah, you gotta get him on the show. You know, and so we're glad to finally get it done. What would be something that you want people to know about you who aren't associated with you? Or who this will be their first time ever hearing you talk or ever seeing you away from the pitch?

• 49:56Speaker 03

  It's like super tough for me like to talk about like to talk about me. But I want to be remembered as, you know, like a great person. I feel like with everything that's going on in the world, with what you do, you know, the level of fame, you know, the scrutiny. And it's like super easy like to lose yourself, you know? But one thing I want to make sure of is to be like a great person. To know that everybody, like every time that, you know, people ask about me, people are gonna be like, no, he's a great dude, you know? And because at the end of the day, yeah, you do on the pitch, you're a soccer player, you have money, whatever. But if you're a great person, like the most important thing, so yeah, that would be my thing.

• 50:40Ryan Clark?

  Also, by the way, shout out to Speedy, you know what I'm saying?

• 50:44Speaker 03

  Oh, that was definitely.

• 50:45Ryan Clark?

  Speedy, take care of us.

• 50:47Channing Crowder?

  Speedy gave him that laser tape.

• 50:49Ryan Clark?

  Yeah, you know.

• 50:49Channing Crowder?

  Oh, okay, okay.

• 50:53Channing Crowder?

  Just quickly with that answer, is it a cultural thing to be as humble as you are and really soccer players? Like y'all are way more humble than other sports. Like it's always like, okay, no, I did okay. You can have a double hat trick. You can hit six in a game and no, my team was great, it's okay. Is that, is that part of the game? Is it a cultural thing? Why are y'all so damn humble?

• 51:15Speaker 03

  So that's the thing, you guys think that we are humble, but if you ask people in Europe about soccer player, they're not gonna say that we are humble. You know, so I don't know if it's a cultural thing, but the way you like for us, the way we talk, you know, if you show like too much confidence, if you feel like too good about yourself, people are not really gonna like it, you know? So we have to be careful with everything that we say, everything that we do. But as I said, people are always gonna talk shit.

• 51:47Channing Crowder?

  I'm talking.

• 51:47Speaker 03

  At the end of the day, they are gonna say their thing and it is, it is what it is, it's okay.

• 51:52Channing Crowder?

  Winby, your boy Winby, he's French. He just said, I'm the MVP. I play defense, I'm the baddest thing.

• 51:57Speaker 03

  Exactly.

• 51:57Channing Crowder?

  Yeah.

• 51:58Ryan Clark?

  He's Americanized.

• 51:59Channing Crowder?

  Oh, okay, okay. He lost his French.

• 52:01Speaker 03

  Like if he says the same thing in France, for example, people are gonna go crazy. He can't, he can't say something like this, definitely. Like a guy, a guy like Kylian, Kylian Mbappe, you know, every time that he says something, people have a problem with it. But if he comes here in the US, you're gonna be like, okay, like, great, we like it.

• 52:20Ryan Clark?

  Yeah, but we, we want that. We want that sort of bravado.

• 52:23Speaker 03

  I want that too, but...

• 52:27Speaker 03

  That's why, you know, when people ask me sometimes about like, like why I love, you know, the American culture, that's why, you know, like the way, like your mentality, the way you allow people, you know, to express themselves. And it's good to show confidence, you know? Like, we can't talk about money in Europe, for example. Like, we can't talk about like your salary, like what you earn, everything. Here, it's all right.

• 52:53Ryan Clark?

  So who would be your favorite American athlete then? Like the, the, the American athlete you point to and you like, he that dude?

• 53:02Speaker 03

  Okay, I don't wanna go with like LeBron, Tom Brady, because it's too easy. One of the guy that I love the most, because I also know him, is Joel Embiid. You know, like every time that he plays, he's just, you know, box office. I'm gonna say, I'm gonna say Deion Sanders.

• 53:22Ryan Clark?

  Really? What is it about Deion? Because you mentioned, you actually mentioned Coach Prime earlier. What is it about Deion Sanders that drew you to him?

• 53:31Speaker 03

  The way he carries himself, you know, the way he talks to people and also like what he represents, you know? Not everybody know about like Deion Sanders in, in Europe, but when I've heard about, you know, everything that he did, I was like, okay, like, let me make my research, you know? And... He's just a great guy, no matter what he does, you know. And now with his son, you know, and everything. Yeah, I will sell the young centers.

• 54:00Ryan Clark?

  Have you ever met him?

• 54:02Speaker 03

  No, not yet.

• 54:03Ryan Clark?

  We need to make that happen.

• 54:04Speaker 03

  Yeah, we have to.

• 54:05Ryan Clark?

  We have to make that happen.

• 54:06Speaker 03

  That would be dope. For the World Cup, he has to show up.

• 54:09Ryan Clark?

  You'll do that.

• 54:10Fred Taylor?

  We'll see how that goes. We always ask our guests, what's their biggest pivot in life? And sometimes we're hesitant because you're so young, man. I don't know how many pivots you've had.

• 54:19Ryan Clark?

  I got one too.

• 54:21Fred Taylor?

  He watched the show too, though. He was ready for it.

• 54:23Ryan Clark?

  I got one too.

• 54:24Fred Taylor?

  But, no, I was certainly going to ask you. So, yeah, so what's, looking back on it all, the entire journey, what would you consider your biggest pivot in life?

• 54:34Speaker 03

  Back in 2020 or 21, maybe, I was in Monaco after like six months. And it was during, I think, the COVID pandemic, right?

• 54:49Speaker 03

  Christmas time, we're celebrating. And my first six months, I was a starter. I was playing every minute. And I was playing OK. Like, I was satisfied at that time. My dad came to me December 26th, the day after Christmas. And he was like, I gotta talk to you. I was like, OK, what's up? What you gotta tell me? He was like, OK, listen, right now, you're average. So you just tell me what you want to do so we can navigate through it. It's either you just want to be average and be like a regular, like, player, you know, earn your money and that's it, or you want to be the best version of yourself. Because right now, I'm telling you what you're doing on the pitch is not enough.

• 55:33Speaker 03

  And you probably think that it is, but it's not.

• 55:37Speaker 03

  I was like, OK, no problem. Let's see. Because one thing with me, like, if you like poke the beer a little bit, that's it. So after that... The next six months, I got named best young player of the league. I was in like the first team, you know, of the league. And it changed my mentality, you know, because I feel like before I used to be like, okay, if I play okay, I play good, it's enough. But now every single time I want to be the best version of myself and it helped me and it shaped me a lot. So, yeah, that would be my pivotal moment.

• 56:15Ryan Clark?

  That ended up being a grown man pivot moment.

• 56:18Speaker 03

  A hundred percent.

• 56:19Ryan Clark?

  Absolutely, that's a grown man pivot moment. Bro, I just want to say thank you, man, first. I know how busy your schedule is and, you know, for you to hit me up and be like, hey, man, I'm being timed these days. And more importantly, just to be a man of your word. I don't think there's anything you could say better about a man outside of that, bro. Thank you, man. Best of luck.

• 56:37Speaker 03

  Thanks for having me. Thanks for having me. Keep doing what you're doing and I keep watching your show.

• 56:43Ryan Clark?

  Nah, we appreciate it, man. We be rooting you on though.

• 56:45Speaker 03

  Thank you, appreciate it.

• 56:46Ryan Clark?

  Thank you, man. That was awesome.

• 56:48Speaker 03

  That was great.

• 56:49Ryan Clark?

  Yeah, he had a grown man pivot. I thought, you know what I'm saying?

• 56:51Speaker 03

  Appreciate it.

• 56:52Ryan Clark?

  I appreciate you.

• 56:53Speaker 03

  Thanks for having me.

• 56:54Ryan Clark?

  How much you weigh, fam?

• 56:56Speaker 03

  Oh, so in pounds, maybe like 190?

• 57:00Ryan Clark?

  190?

• 57:01Speaker 03

  Yeah, 190.

• 57:02Ryan Clark?

  Tall, too.

• 57:03Speaker 03

  6'2".

• 57:04Channing Crowder?

  Your ass would have been a wide receiver.

• 57:05Ryan Clark?

  Oh, hell, yeah, you'd been a wide receiver.

• 57:06Speaker 03

  No, but I can play. Last time, you can ask Vision.

• 57:34Speaker 05

  Every game day, you show up for your team. Now, it's your time.

• 57:44Speaker 05

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