Gabriel Esquivel has only been playing futsal for four years and he’s already wearing the green and gold.
The 15-year-old St Columba’s student leaves for Brazil on August 9 as a member of the Australian Futsal Association U15s team.
The Aussies will take on local Brazilian teams during the 20-game competition.
Gabriel said he was excited to be heading overseas, and appreciated his parents support. His grandmother Nieves Esquivel will travel to Brazil to see the young gun in action in defence.
“I feel the pressure if I stuff up, that’s the game over,” Gabriel said.
It’s not the first time the Linden teen has represented Australia.
Last year he played in the U14s Australian Futsal Association team in England, where other teams’ coaches voted him a top three player in the world for his age. Playing the English teams, they won all their games bar two.
Gabriel plays futsal with Western Wolves and has played for NSW City West – a team consisting of western Sydney representative players – for the past four years, three of them as captain.
He also enjoys club football, starting with Springwood at age five, and moving to Nepean four years ago.
But his dream is to play futsal as a full-time professional, and if he can learn a few moves from his Brazilian hero Falcao, that would be a bonus. “I like his style of play. He has this flair and creates new things in the game.”