The Dutch Lions would like to congratulate DDL Academy player, Oliver Tucker, who has been selected to join the Barcelona All-Star Squad. Oli will travel to Barcelona in early September to train at the FC Barcelona Headquarters, play matches against Spanish youth academy teams, and watch two La Liga matches from reserved seats at Camp Nou Stadium and RCD Espanyol Stadium.
Over a two-month timespan, more than 5,000 players participated in the 31 FC Barcelona Soccer Camps across the United States, with less than 10% being chosen for the All-Star Squad. Oliver will now train on the same fields that have produced the some of the world’s greatest talents, such as Messi, Xavi, and Iniesta. His team will get to meet current and former FC Barcelona players, as well as have a career orientation and Q & A session led by a Barcelona legend.
In talking with Oliver’s dad, Todd Tucker you could sense the joy for the family. Todd shared, “Oli is extremely excited for the experience, AND we are certainly delighted to share it with our ORANGE family. Opportunities like this for Oli are a direct result and product of the training he gets weekly from you and the DDL staff…. And Oli is well aware of that! He may not say much, but he loves soccer and the Dayton Dutch Lions.”
The Tuckers are members of the U10 Boys team. In his time with the Dutch Lions, Oli has really applied himself to the training and has grown as a soccer player. He truly has earned this awesome opportunity with his hard work and dedication to the game he loves.
DDL FC General Manager Ric Campbell said, “We are proud to have Oliver as a member of our youth academy and wish him good luck on his trip to Barcelona. The Lions have always strived to be the “Gateway to Professional Soccer” and we hope this might be Oli’s first step. Core value #5 for the club is Continual Improvement and Oli is doing that. In turn, he has earned himself a wonderful soccer experience. Have fun, train hard, and represent us well.”