Anatomy of Resilience: Daryl Dike, Griezmann, and US Soccer

Now you did spend four years in England and it couldn't have all been bad. What did you love most about living there? For me, I love, it's just the culture. I think I love, I love the football culture. Everything is football. You are every single time I got back up from an injury. It's got not straight back down and it was difficult. I'm not going to lie. I think it was very, very difficult for me, but you know, one thing I always kind of told myself was that my career wasn't done that I still had lots of time to go and, you know, fulfill my dreams and play at the top level and do all these things. And let me tell you that period made me realize just how much I loved it, how much I loved playing and how much happiness it brought me because when it was taken away from me, I'm like, oh my, there was a period where I was like, I don't know what to do with myself. So you're the youngest of five siblings. Dinner time must have been interesting for you. And I think I scored again on like Halloween and I did it again. What? Yeah, it's called exactly amazing lore. Yeah, exactly. So I was like, yeah, why not? Hello, and welcome to another episode of the U.S. soccer podcast. I'm your host Megan Klingerberg and I am super stoked to be joined by Daryl DK on this week's episode. I like to hype up my guests on the show, Daryl. Are you ready? I think I'm ready. I'm ready. All right, a native of Edmund, Oklahoma, Daryl, you were the number five overall pick in the 2020 MLS superdraft and named MVP of the NCAA division one men's soccer tournament for Virginia in 2019. You helped Orlando city when it's first ever playoff game in 2020. And the next year won the ConquerCalf Gold Cup with the U.S. men's national team. You have had many career highlights for your 26 years, but arguably your most impressive quality cannot be measured. You're a guy who is the definition of grit. Injuries have ended plenty of careers, but instead you decided yours would only be a chapter instead of the ending. Welcome to the show, Daryl. Thank you so much. That's a good intro right there. That's a very good intro, but okay, cool. I like that. I'm glad you liked it. We love to, uh, you know, make our guests feel really welcome. So we, we, we actually do put a decent amount of time into into that. So I'm glad you liked it. I love it. All right. So we got to start back at the beginning, Oklahoma. All right. Besides being known for the iconic Broadway show of the same name and the longest stretch of Route 66 in the country, Oklahoma is some, is home to something you might not expect. A whole family of soccer stores, the decays. Okay. So you're the youngest of five siblings. Dinner time must have been interesting for you. Yeah. But I enjoyed it. Listen, the house was always loud. Everyone's always talking everything, but no, I enjoyed it. It's good to have all them, like having so many people around you, really. And yeah, I love that I love that growing up in still the same way, to be honest. Yeah, my family, um, we're, we have like a background of being Italian. And so every Sunday we would go over to my grandma's house and we would have, like, generations of family there. And we would all kind of like gather around and eat food and it was super loud. And it was like really, it's really fun to be around family in that way. I feel like it's such a nice, um, like way to connect. And it feel like you have such a strong community growing up. Did it feel like that for you? Yeah, absolutely. I think that's one thing that my, like parents kind of made sure that everything was just kind of close knit. I think even now, like we're all like best friends, like we all, they literally, I wouldn't doubt if they called at some point throughout this call. They call about four or five times a day. But yeah, no, we're all, we're all super close and it started from young. I think it's something that's very, very important and helped me throughout my life, career, everything. Yeah, like I mentioned, your family has a rich soccer history. And I want to know how have they helped shape your career? Yeah, I think it's, it's nice to kind of have that sort of, you know, support group in your background that is so like they all understand football. They all understand soccer. Um, so I think it's nice and I want your best interest. Of course, after a game, I can go look at my phone and I have a message from my dad, mom, you know, my sister, my brother, you're all being like, uh, especially my brother, but really you should have done this here. You should have done that there, you know, uh, so of course, and that's kind of how it's always been. But it's something I, um, you know, you wouldn't trade it, you wouldn't trade it for anything. I think it's very nice because when it comes to my career, um, they want what's best for me. And they all understand it as well. So it's nice to have, you know, six different mouths shouting at you to do something or not do something. I'm sure that can be loud sometimes. Um, I don't know if you know this, but fun fact, your sister, uh, Courtney, who played in the 2015 World Cup played for Nigeria. And I actually played against her in the group stage. Really? Yeah. How cool is that? Yeah, that's pretty cool. It's a small world. Yeah, it's my world actually. Make sure you tell her I said hi. All right. I'll tell her. I'll tell her if you say so. I imagine that there aren't many pro players coming out of Oklahoma. Besides like all of the siblings of the DK household, what does it mean to represent Oklahoma on some of the world's biggest stages? Yeah, it means a lot to represent to represent state because I think, similar as you said, there's not that many who have come out. And, you know, as I said, it's a big honor, but it's not something that I necessarily did by myself. You know, I think, you know, I'm growing up. I had tons of people who were helping me and tons of people who believed in me, tons of people who gave me the opportunity to even be where I am now. And yeah, it's an honor. It's a good feeling. I think generally speaking, you know, it's, you know, it's from your hometown anytime you can represent your hometown in a positive fashion. It's something that's very, very important to you and very good. So, yeah, it's a good feeling. I enjoy it. That's, that's so cute. That was such a cute answer. I really enjoyed that. I just wanted to tell you, okay, sorry, moving on. Okay, you were drafted to the first round to Orlando City in 2020. That was kind of a weird year to say the least to start your pro career. What was that like? Um, yeah, it was a very, very weird year. I mean, I think for me being a rookie, it was just exciting to be there. You're just excited to be a part of anything. Um, of course, after two games, the whole season got derailed because of COVID. And I remember that was like my first kind of, you know, experience being a professional. And I was like, well, well, this is a little bit odd, you know, going into stadiums after coming back, you know, there's no fans. There was, that was the MLS's back tournament where we were in a, we're in a hotel about five minutes from my apartment for like two months. And I couldn't leave or anything. And I remember that was a crazy experience, but no, it's, uh, for a first year, like, listen, I think obviously everything was, you know, crazy wild, um, and it's passed over by now, um, but it was a good experience. I think it's something that you always dream of growing up as a kid. I think I was fortunate enough to even play with players like, you know, Pato, Luis Noni, people who played at the top level, um, in my first, in my first years. So, yeah, it was, it was a good experience. It was a good experience. And then even, yeah, who can say that they played in something like that MLS's back, you know, I don't think very many people can say that. No, it's, it, the bubble was weird. The bubble was really weird, especially like being in it because in the NW cell, we had one too. So it was like a very interesting kind of experience. And I'm sure, you know, being a rookie and then being thrown in a bubble with like, kind of all of your heroes, right? What kind was probably a very interesting time. I was wondering, um, who you looked up to as a kid and who you tried to model your game after. So growing up, this kind of sounds so like, oh, like, uh, my brother. I mean, uh, like growing up, like my brother played, and obviously, you know, being the younger brother, it's always, you always look at someone, you always look at him and you're going to want to be like him. You're going to want to compete, you know, against some of the records that he had and some of the things that he did. Um, so he's definitely someone I always, I always looked up and looked up to. And then outside of him, uh, I grew up a big Chelsea fan. So I love Jock, but when I was growing up, uh, he was someone who I always watched and I always loved and every single time I'd sit there and be in my yard, be like, yeah, I want to, I want to be like him, I want to, I want to be like him. So those would probably be the two people that I would say were the biggest, you know, the biggest influences for me. Those are pretty good picks, I would say. I loved watching Drogba in that era. I felt like he was such a force. Yeah, he's just dominant, you know, I think, especially nowadays, it's not something that you see as much, um, like people like him. So yeah, going back and seeing him just, his ability to just kind of eliminate an entire backline just by himself and nullify his unbelievable. And then obviously the big time goes, Mr. Clutch. I will never forget when Chelsea literally won the Champions League on the backs of Drogba and they literally sat in, played defense the entire tournament. And then they would counter with Drogba and he would just make something out of absolutely nothing. That was the craziest Champions League year to me. I don't remember exactly which one that was, but I know it's two down 12. You're like, I know which one. Yeah, I want to say this is two down 12, but yeah, no, I remember. Yeah, I remember that even like the header gets by me like, yeah, Drogba was not. Yeah. And I mean, let's get back to you that you've scored some incredible goals, especially in those first couple of seasons as a pro. You really burst onto the scene in 2020, 2021, banging goals for Orlando City. You've been played so well that you went to Europe on loan to Barnesley in the championship. And while you were there, you were electric. You scored four goals and six games. One player of the month honors and even scored a bike against Huddersfield. It was such a successful showing that you scored a big move to West Brom. What was it like in that moment when it felt like all your dreams were becoming reality? Yeah, it was a big thing. I think things moved very, very quickly. I just got drafted. I just started playing in Orlando and then, you know, yeah, things just kind of took off. And I went and just got to experience English football for a little bit and then went on to a move to a team that, you know, a top team that had been in the Premier League for so many, so many years. And I remember being being there. And like when I first, you know, things were first started to rise. I was like, oh, like I'm playing English football. Like this is crazy. Like I'm over here. There's a cup match. There's a cup match and we're playing Chelsea. There's a cup match. We're playing Bolo, Newcastle. Brentford, you know, and it's like these clubs that you're like, oh, like, they are big clubs. And it's something that kind of growing up in America. It's very different because it's something you always, you always kind of dreamt of it. But you never fully knew, like, how is it a possibility? Is it going to happen? Do you only saw these things on TV? And so when it was actually happening to me, like, oh, I'm going to, you know, step foot on there. It's, it's a dream control. Like it was, it was so, it was so just amazing. It was amazing. That is so cool. I love hearing about these, these times and, and like, how much it means to somebody to, like, fulfill their dreams and live them out. It is something that is very unique to soccer or sports in general. You have a dream as a kid and then you get to live it out as an adult or, or a young adult. And it's such an interesting career because it ends like at a time for a lot of people who are still in their, you know, 30s, 40s. I just retired two years ago at 38 and people talk about it, still talk about it. Like it's, you know, graduation or a funeral or a wedding all wrapped into one. So it's a really kind of interesting sport. But I love hearing about how people kind of go through and get to live out their dreams. So it's really cool hearing you talk about that. Unfortunately, though, right after that, you ran into a streak of bad luck with injuries. And sometimes that happens in sports. But talk to me about going from the highest to highest that you're, you're living out your dreams to some of the lowest lows. Yeah, I think, um, mentally going over there was probably like that little period was the hardest I've ever, you know, I'm a Brad. As you said, I was, you know, things were going well with football. I was playing with the national team. I was, I was doing a lot of things and everything seemed to kind of be going 100 miles an hour and I was loving it. And then what I got injured, everything just slowed down. Everything stopped. And I don't think that's ever anything that you really think about. You always kind of think, oh, play bad or this happens. You never really think like, oh, I just, you should get injured. Um, and it was a hard point for me. I think luckily I had a good support group around me. You know, tons of friends around me, my family were super supportive. The club, friends, everybody was super, super supportive. But I'll still admit, like it was very, very difficult for me, especially after the reoccurrence of it, I think one in literally pulled my hamstring the first start that I had there, you know, and then from that quad injury, Achilles, other Achilles and things like that. And it just kind of felt like every single time I got back up from an injury, it's got knocked straight back down. Um, and it was difficult. I'm not going to lie. I think it was very, very difficult for me. But, you know, one thing I always kind of told myself was that my career wasn't done that I still had lots of time to go and, you know, fulfill my dreams and play at the top level and do all these things. And I just had to kind of push through the little storm that was, uh, that was happening. And then I always believed in myself that things would stop, you know, fingers crossed, touch wood. You know, I've been great for a while. So, um, and that's, and that's kind of something I always, always believed in. I always told myself that I can just keep working. If you keep, uh, you know, your head right, I think, you know, you'll get restless. It's unfortunate. Obviously, I don't want to, I do not wish about anybody. I do not wish on myself. Do not wish it happened. But I mean, listen, you, I grew out of it and, um, you know, I've grown, I've grown from that. And that's why I mentioned in the intro that you were such a gritty player. But somebody who can overcome these type of injuries and battle back, it's textbook resilience. But a lot of people don't have that. So where did you learn that from? Uh, I think I've kind of grown up probably from seeing my parents. I think, I think, um, you know, my parents moved from Nigeria and I feel like just watching them not necessarily struggle. But, you know, they had, they have had like, you know, tough times and raising five children in a country that you are not from, um, kind of seeing them. But no matter what, life kind of always threw them a curveball, something always was happening and seeing how they always kind of got out of that. Along with their faith, you know, God, I think has been a big reason this helped escape a lot of the problems for us. And yeah, I think being able from a young age being able to see them, you know, siblings and things like that. I've always had that sort of resilient factor and that sort of belief that even one that when things are, you know, not going your way. There's going to be, you know, sunshine after the after the storm, you know, there's going to be a rainbow out of the storm. And I think, yeah, they've kind of granted me on that one and I owe them a lot to because, yeah, like you said, I think some people in the situation, it would have been a little bit different. But I'm fortunate enough to have still gone through it, of course, didn't have an option. Yeah, yeah, yeah, you're really, really didn't have an option but to keep moving forward, you know, I love that you mentioned rainbows. I'm sure you know, but Dolly Pardon passed away just a couple of weeks ago and she had this really amazing quote that if you want rainbow rainbows, you have to put up with some rain. And I feel like that's a really beautiful way of looking at life and while we don't ever want to wish ourselves the rain or the injuries or anything like that. I think we miss out on a lot if we're so focused on what's next or how bad it is. So it's really nice to be able to talk to somebody who has such a great outlook and perspective about what they went through. Yeah, thank you for that. I think it's something that's very, very important. I think, yeah, you can only grow, you can only kind of grow throughout it. It made me always knew I loved soccer. I loved it, everything, and let me tell you that period made me realize just how much I loved it, how much I loved playing and how much happiness it brought me because when it was taken away from me, I'm like, oh my God, there was a period where I was like, I don't know what to do myself. But yeah, I think when you have experiences like that, it makes you, it makes you cherish things a lot more. Now, you did spend four years in England and it couldn't have all been bad. What did you love most about living there? For me, I love, it's just the culture. I think I love the football culture, everything is football. You go in the store, everything is about football because you know, here in the States, everything, you know, it's basketball, there's the NFL, there's the MLB, there's tons of things, but everything is football, and I love that. I think, as I said, even going to games, I would go to games all the time, I'd go to Chelsea, I'd go to the Emirates, I'd go to Little Trafford, I'd go to, you know, Tottenham State, I'd go to every single, every time I had a chance to go to a match, I would. And I think that was one of the craziest things for me, and then another thing was probably just the difference. I think it's different, I think everybody kind of likes a little bit of change, or me at least. Yeah, experiencing a different culture that English food, which was bad. But like I enjoyed it, but like I enjoyed, you know, living in Europe, you know, being a completely different culture that everything I've known for my entire life. Now you started out your pro career in Orlando City, then you played all over the world in London, and you were eating my food, but you were also probably going to other countries and having good food, too. But now you find yourself back where you started. What does that full circle moment mean to you? Yeah, it means a lot. I think, as I said, when I was first here, this place was, you know, it was home for me. It was a place that gave me my first opportunity, and the place I was really, really happy about. And I think now being back here, having the opportunity to be happy again, and, you know, playing front of some of the fans, that have supported me for a very long time, club that has supported me, you know, throughout the beginning of my career, until now. Still, it's a good feeling. It's a very good feeling, and I'm happy for it, of course. And I think it's nice to be able to now come in this season and now contribute and now help. And now not just be a fan on TV, but now, you know, on the pitch and able to contribute again. So I do see that you have a few different nicknames, and one that really stood out to me was from your first stint with Orlando City. And they call you the mummy. That is so unique. Please, please, please tell me the backstory. So I remember, I think it was like my second game. I don't know, but I think it was my second game. I went up for a header, and then, like, I actually still have a score here or somewhere. You can kind of see it like this. But like, on my second game, I got hit in the face, and I was bleeding so late. Right on my head. And then, I don't even know how I thought of it, but I was like, oh, you know, that'd be kind of funny if I like, you know, like, like, you know, I had my answer. I kind of looked like a mummy. I was like, what if I scored and I did the scoring, and I did it. And then I was like, uh, like, yeah, and then I ended up doing that once. And then I think I scored again on, like, Halloween, and then did it again. What? Yeah, it's actually amazing lore. Yeah, exactly. So I was like, yeah, why not? So next time, next time, has that, uh, has that nickname followed you? Yeah, some people still do that. Absolutely. Yeah. Even when I came back, I was like, oh, my gosh, like, when you first score, you have to do the celebration. And I was like, okay, wait, you have scored. So did you do it? No. The thing is, when I score, sometimes I get, I get overcome with the motion. And sometimes I don't know what I do. Um, sometimes I don't even know it's just screaming. It's, uh, yeah, I don't even know. Sometimes it changes everyone. So I personally think those are the best kind though. Like, I just love seeing somebody so in the moment that their body, they're completely out of control of their own body. So props to you for that. That's, that's, that seems like a good way to go about it. Um, and I do feel like when you talk about this mummy time period, it sounds like you're having so much fun when you were playing. And I think we can all agree that we play our best and our most free event when we were having fun. And it seems like the men's national team also agreed because around that time, you got your first call up. What did it feel like to pull on the jersey for the first time? Yeah, I remember putting on the jersey for the first time was a crazy experience. Like I said, it's something that you always kind of dream about as a kid, but you never really believe, oh, is it going to happen or not? Um, it's a big honor. Of course, I think there's tons of people who would love to be wearing the shirt, who would love to be able to represent their national team. And for me, it was, uh, it was a big experience. It was a big thing for me, a big honor. And yeah, I loved it. I loved it. You know, fingers crossed, I want to get the feel again. I think I will. I think if I continue doing what I need to do, I can't love it. It was here in Orlando as well. And my first game was actually here in Orlando. So it was nice. Orlando's a big like, like, it has a lot of meaning for you. It feels like it does. I think, um, yeah, everything really for a stop. It's really with the national team for stop. It's been a, yeah, it's been a great place to be fair. That's why it feels like home. That's amazing. Now, you could have chosen to play for Nigeria, like, a lot of your family did who we talked about a lot in this interview. Why did you decide to represent the United States? Um, I think one of the main reasons, because I think when I came, well, first of all, when I first came, they were first people to reach out to me, of course, but even then, like, I always wanted to play. I always feel like when I grew up, at least I was watching a lot more USA. Um, I think my siblings probably were watching Nigeria, but for me, like, I love watching things like, you know, Josie, of course, it's him. Josie, you see, Clint seeing all those guys and being like, oh, like, I would love to do that. You know, growing up in the States, I think, especially with House Soccer's trajectory, it was kind of moving at that point. It was, yeah, it was something that I really, really wanted to be a part of. And when, when Greg gave me the opportunity, it was, yeah, I was happy. I was happy for it. I think you're one of US Soccer's most spirited fans. Well, now is your chance to prove it. We're looking to celebrate three super fans as part of our most spirited fan contest presented by Jim Bean. Are you that fan who knows every set of US Soccer trivia? Are you the one rallying your crew for game day? Do you obsess over curating the perfect game day fit? If so, you may just be our most spirited fan. Enter to win by heading to us soccer.com slash most dash spirited dash fan dash gym dash beam. Choose the superlative that sounds most like you and tell us more about how you cheer on the US national teams winners will receive a premium match experience for themselves and a guest at the USW and T versus Spain match at Audifield on Saturday, October 10th. There's something that I like to ask players who come on the show. I love to ask them how their definition of success has changed from early in your career or your childhood to now. How has it changed? I think, unfortunately, I'm really hard on myself. Where some people are looking at you like, oh, you're successful. You're playing a professional this and that, blah, blah. Which I have been, you know, I always, I have been, but I think over the years, I think now that I've been playing, I think success for me is just, I don't think there's a single thing that I'll be like, I made it. Because I think no matter what, every single time I hit a goal, before I was like, oh, I just want to be a professional. And now I think every single time I hit a goal, I'm like, okay, next goal. Okay, next goal. Oh, I made a national team, okay, I want to play in the gold cup. Oh, I'm putting gold cup, I want to go put in the gold cup. You know what I mean? I think that's the thing is like, there is no one single thing for success. Because for me, I'm always trying to get the next thing after I've gotten there. Do you ever stop to smell the roses though? No, I do, and I think that's something I need to get better at. I've been told I really do need to. And I do, I would say I do it once in a while. Of course, where you have to stop and pause and enjoy and be like, wait, look at where you are, you know. I think that's something you'll probably do when I'm done playing. I'll be like, you did really well. You're all right, you know? Yeah, I think that's what probably will have a more likely. I had a really wise teacher tell me one time that to always want the next thing means that you never appreciate who you are right now. And I thought that was really brilliant. Because I was doing the same thing as you 100%. I'm like, what's next? What can I achieve next? What can I go after? What's the next goal? And he had me stop and think about it a little bit. And essentially, I was telling myself that I was never good enough. It's not enough. And then he's like, there is a world in which you can live as this is enough. But also chase down competitively your goals. And I was like, oh, can you teach me how to do that? It was a really big paradigm shift in my career. And this is why I like asking other athletes about their definition of success. So thank you so much for sharing that with me. Well, thank you. It's just me. It's something I am actually currently. I'm told even Martin, like here in Orlando, it's the other day I scored. And I walked off the pitch and I was super angry. And he was like, why are you mad? I feel like I could have done more of this in that blah, blah. He was like, you just scored your first goal. Why are you mad? And it's things like that. He's like, obviously, yes, you could have maybe done better with this in that blah, but he was like, you're going to grow miserable if you're doing that every single time. So yeah, it's very, very fun going now. So it's so much easier. Like sometimes I wish that we could see ourselves like our friends or our teammates do. Because I feel like they have such a nicer way of looking at, like not as not as harsh of looking at us from the outside than we do on the inside. Yeah, no, it's very true. Because I mean, even then, if I was thinking, if I was speaking to a friend in my position, I would talk to that friend how I talk to myself. You know, I mean, yeah, totally. I'd be like, you know, do that blah, blah. First time I'm going to be like, bro, like, just go ahead. What are you doing? Yeah, like, like, like shut up, bro. That's exactly what I'm saying. Like, we all do that too. And I know it, I know it comes from like a place of wanting to get better and being so competitive. And that's one of the reasons why we're at this level, right? And it's like the balance of figuring out how we can be as competitive and also like feel really good about our careers and stuff like that. It's not something that anybody, I think, fully ever gets right. So you still got time, though. You still got time. Right, sir. Yeah. Got it. Got it. Okay, so just as best summer, you joined Orlando City again, who are defending Open Cup champions. You weren't part of that group, but it still means that you were playing in this tournament with a target on your back. What's that like? Yeah, I think obviously every football, every competitor, every athlete wants to win, wants to win trophies. And the Open Cup is an opportunity to go and win a trophy, being the people who want it. I think everyone's going to be looking at us and say, I don't know, we can't have them. We want to take what's theirs. I think for us, it's a lot of players, some people know how good of a feeling it is to win something. It's a good opportunity. It's something that you look forward to as an athlete to play matches like this, to play tournaments like this and get that far. And yeah, you want to win. Who doesn't want to win? That's what we play the sport for. Absolutely. Do you like being the team to beat or do you like going into it as an underdog? I like being the team to beat. I think it gives you some sort of not arrogance, but confidence going into games that you know, that you're capable of it, that you know that you're kind of believing yourself. And like you said, when you're happy, when you're confident, when you're playing, you know, things are free-flowing. That's when you play your best. And you know, yeah, who doesn't want to be, you know, what that is being really good. Yeah, I always like being on the teams that we're like having the target. That means like, you got all the best players. It's like, of course. Why do you want to be the underdog? We are supposed to win. Not with that supposed to win. No way supposed to win. But I know what you're saying. I know what you're saying. Now you've never played in an open cup match. And the cup is a really unique tournament. And for our listeners who don't know, it's the longest running national soccer competition in the United States. It's a single elimination tournament that pits MLS teams against lower league and amateur sides and an open bracket competition. It's just really fun because it gives underdogs. Like we were talking about the opportunity to knock off pro clubs. What are your thoughts on the tournament? Yeah, I think it's a great tournament. There's lots of people who, you know, they haven't been able to go and play a Columbus crew or play a San Diego or play against, you know, some of these teams. So that's a big opportunity. And then it's great because it gives some of these, you know, fan bases that aren't in the MLS. The opportunity to go and see how they compete against some of these top teams. And it kind of gives, you know, even fans support, you know, more reentry into the sport. They kind of get to see it. They get to see the top competition. They're like, oh, okay. You know, and I think it grows the sport. Collectively, not just the, you know, 30, whatever teams in the MLS. It's across the entire country. It grows the sport. And I think that's something that's very, very important. And it's honor, of course, as a player, to be able to contribute to that, to be able to play it. And of course, with trophy. Yeah, like you said, you're two wins away from a second open cup title in club history. What do you make of your side's chances? Yeah, I think we're, you know, we have a very, very good side. I think we've shown that we can compete against anyone in the division. Of course, we'd like to be doing better. Of course, we can do better. But I think we have very, very good chances. And they're just our kind of duty to go out there and to show what we can do. Because I think if we do, then we can get the results that we want. When you came back home from England and started playing for Orlando again, one of your new teammates is Griezmann. What's it like sharing the field with a player like that? I know you've played with some incredible players. And where does he rank among everybody you've played with? Yeah, I was sharing a fish with Griezmann. It's something crazy. I mean, a both cup winner, you know, a player who's played the top level, a political obviously, played Barcelona. He's played, you know, all over the place. So being able to share the pitch with someone who's had that many experiences is something that's great. It's a great thing as a player to be able to kind of grow with him, to learn from him, to see the things that he he kind of does on the pitch, the things that he kind of teaches on the pitch. They're very, very important. It's a great feeling. And then, yeah, of course, in terms of ranking, I think he might be number one. I don't think he's probably number one. Yeah, obviously, as you said, I've played with some great, great players. I've been very, very fortunate for that. And yeah, no, it's very exciting to be able to play with the player like him. I think it's great for my career. It's great to, you know, even in terms of fandom. Being able to be like, oh, yeah, like that's Griezmann, you know? Yeah, I totally get it. I played with Christine Sinclair for many, many years on the Portland Thorns. And as you know, she's like this incredible top class soccer player who will like, you know, be talked about as one of the grades of all time. And I feel like that's the same with Griezmann. And I always loved how I get to just like pick her brain about soccer. Or learn little things from her. Is there something that you've asked him? Or is there something that you've seen? Or is there something that you haven't asked him yet? But you want to ask him? I'm asking everything really. I think every single time we're like getting a water or something like that. Even for me, by person like from a learning standpoint, I'm always like, hey, what should I do here? What should I do that? After a game, I'll literally pull up a video clip with something like, like a pasta he played me. I'm like, oh, should I have done this? I move this a lot. And like, the thing is he's very nice. He's very, like, willing. He's very open to, you know, helping. You can really see that around the training ground that he wants people to get better. He wants to help people. Which is obviously something that sometimes you don't necessarily see all the time, but someone who's, you know, played at the top, top level. But he's very nice. And I think that's, you know, something that's very, very helpful for me. You know, I'm always picking the brain. How is it? How is Diego Simeone? How is it? Radical, how is it? I'm not just mad at the weather over there. What do you eat this and that? You know, I don't know. I just, it's like being a little kid, you know, and just if you're asking random questions, I'm sure you might get annoyed at it, but I don't care. I love this. Have he spilled any tea for you? Yeah, but I just, yeah, maybe. Yeah. You're like, I can't tell you. Yeah, for a reason. I got to, no, nothing too crazy, but he's not good. It's going to be able to hear things about him from folks who like, you know, play at the top level, even with friends, talking about playing with the World Cup, playing with them Bopping, playing with them Bele. Who's faster? Who's this? You know what I mean? Yeah, it's good. It's going to be able to hear stuff like that here. And it's like, it's very different from what you see on TV. All right, let's end on something a little unserious. I see that you are a regular on TikTok. You clearly are having some fun on there. What drew you to the platform? And what made you want to start creating? I think the thing that I enjoy about TikTok is it's kind of where I can just be me, kind of just be myself and say whatever joke that I want to. I think sometimes on Instagram, sometimes on Twitter, sometimes some interview, some things, you know, you have to kind of, I hold myself to like a, you know, a certain way. I think on TikTok is just kind of me. I just kind of know filter, just kind of talk how I want, say the jokes that I want and things like that. And then I enjoy being able to interact with people. I love, I've always been someone who's a very big talker. I'd love to speak to people and, yeah, what a better way to, you know, post a random video of me sharing some terrible opinion and having people in the comments tell me that my opinion's wrong or whatever it is. Like, yeah, like I enjoy, I enjoy it. I don't mind it. Yeah, I really appreciate a lot of your videos are funny, man. I like that. Where did you get your sense of humor from? Ah, probably that. My dad jokes. Probably, probably, and I'm going, I'm going into it as I've been around with my friends and stuff. So yeah, probably somewhere on there. I noticed that a lot of your TikTok videos right now are solo. But is there anyone from the locker room that you would, that you would pull into a, a collab? Geez, I can barely get that out. Not good. Yeah, that actually be a good idea. I just don't know what I would try and do. I could do anything really. Yeah, but who would you pick? Who would you pick? Shirley Griezmann's the easy one in it. You'll expel the tea. Shirley Griezmann's the one that people would be like, oh, yeah, I got to see Griezmann. Oh, my gosh, that's amazing. Yeah, maybe you could get him to spill like a little tea on your TikTok. Save it. Don't, I mean, don't spill it here. Save it for your, for your own personal humor. Oh, that's going to spill some tea. All right, Darrell, thank you so much for coming on the show. This has been such a fun conversation. And I wish you all the best in the open cup and all the rest of the competitions this year for Orlando City as well. Great. Thank you so much for having me. I enjoyed it. I really did. I loved it. What a fun conversation with Darrell. I feel like he is just such a breath of fresh air. He is bubbly. He is fun. He's got a great outlook on life. He's clearly very gritty. And I'm so happy that our audience got to see this really cool side of this guy. I'm so glad you all are sticking around because it's time for Ask the Pros sponsored by O'Reilly Auto Parts. This is where you can ask me a question. And I will get back to you with an answer on the next show. And if you remember, we've had some pretty unhinged questions lately. These are a little more, I guess you could say hinged, but still very fun. Our first one comes from Michelle and Colorado Springs. And she wants to know with the 2027 World Cup less than a year away, what position group do you think still has the most competition for roster spots? Michelle, that is clearly the forwards, the strikers. If you look at the roster makeup, it's going to be a 26 player roster size. So the same as this Passman's World Cup, which means that there will be more spots for players available to make the roster. So I would assume that means that they bring a few more forwards than they normally do. But at the same time, they're not going to bring everyone. And it is such a deep class. You got Sophia Wilson, Rodman Swanson, Macquarieau. You got Alyssa Thompson, Centaur Cooper, and Emma Sears. I just feel like they're all world-class players, but not all of them are going to go. You have to have a balance of forwards and midfielers and players on the back line. So players that are able to maybe be more versatile like Cat Macquarieau will be able to have a better opportunity to make it than maybe some of the other players. That is only if she is fully healthy and 100% though, which is not a guarantee at this point. But it will be really interesting to see which of these players Emma Hayes is going to go with for the starting lineup. I don't think that is 100% written in stone yet. I think Sophia Wilson, Rodman, Swanson, and Alyssa Thompson are the most likely right now to be in that like any one of them could be picked and be in there. And then to me, those are probably the four players that are on lock to go to the world cup. And then everybody else is playing hard to be considered for the roster. All right, Michelle. Thank you so much for the question. We have another one from Tom who is in New York City. Hey Tom, how you doing? I'm also in New York City. The US men's national team starts its next cycle with Peru, Chile, Mexico, and Canada this fall. After a world cup, what are you watching for in those first few games that tells you a team is actually evolving? Well Tom, I hate to hit you with kind of a non-answer but I have to give a non-answer. I don't think it really matters. I think that Pacha is probably going to give opportunity to a lot of people. I think he wants to figure out what his pool is going to look like. He finally has four years to look at this group and analyze how he wants his team to play and then figure out the pieces and where they're going to fit in. And he's going to start doing that right now. But the first part of that is player identification. So I would assume that he's going to broaden the pool, try and look at all of the players that he can see because four years is a long time. I can certainly guarantee that the team that went to this world cup in the summer of 26 will certainly not be the one that's going in 2030. So I guess you've got to look out for the new players. Let's keep an eye on them because that's going to be the most interesting part of this. Who's going to be in and who's going to be left out? Thank you Tom, thank you Michelle. I appreciate you and your more hinged questions. If you have a question for us, the pros drop our partners Westwood 1, a DM on Instagram at Westwood 1 Sports. All right, I will see you next week on the US soccer podcast. And please do not forget to follow us. So you never miss an episode.