Emina Ekic always wanted to be a professional soccer player, but she never imagined that she would get to do it in her hometown.
“It was a total surprise,” Ekic said on a recent edition of the Soccer Girl Problems podcast. “I would have been happy to play pro anywhere, but now I get to stay home and be around my friends and my family. Also, I am part of the first team. That is pretty special to me.”
Ekic, selected No. 5 by Racing Louisville FC in the 2021 NWSL Draft, spoke with hosts Carly Beyar, Shannon Fay, and Alanna Locast about her draft day experience, overcoming multiple ACL injuries, her advice to young “lady ballers” and more.
“Don’t compare your journey to other people’s journeys,” the forward said. “Because yours is super different, and you can end up at the same place at different times. Your teammate may commit before you but that shouldn’t scare you.
“On my college team, we had people commit during their freshman, sophomore and junior and senior years. And we all ended up at the University of Louisville playing.”
While the interview was recorded before Ekic opened preseason camp, she emphasized wanting to thrive” at her new team but knows that won’t come easily.
“I am new here. I am new to the league. If I mess up, it is OK. I need to keep pushing through it,” Ekic said. “I just want to be real with myself. Because I know I am going to struggle. I know I am not going to show up and just be amazing.”
