Hadji Barry came to the United States ten years ago from his native country of Guinea. He didn’t speak English, and he had left behind his parents and siblings with one goal in mind-- to become a professional soccer player.
Barry achieved that success when he was selected by Orlando City in the 2016 MLS SuperDraft. He played in eight matches and earned four starts in his first year in MLS. In his ten appearances with Orlando City B in USL, he scored four goals and earned two assists.
But his success has required sacrifice.
“I came to America in September 2006,” Barry said in an interview with LionNation. “I was thirteen. I’ll never forget that day. It was very emotional. I cried. Leaving my parents was one of the hardest decisions I’ve had to make in my life.”
Since coming to the United States, Barry has had to leave his immediate family behind. He’s never had his parents or siblings cheer him on at a soccer match. He hasn’t even seen his mother in ten years.
Check out the Full Interview on LionNation
“I’m looking forward to that day when they’re in the stands just cheering me on cause I haven’t had that. My whole career I’ve been in the United States,” Barry said. Still, Barry says he is very close to his parents. “I talk to my parents every day. People say ‘you haven’t seen them in ten years,’ and I say yeah, I haven’t seen them in ten years but that doesn’t mean I haven’t seen them in video thanks to technology nowadays.”
With some free time available to Barry in the offseason, he traveled back to Guinea to see his family for the first time in a decade. Barry was particularly excited to see his mother, who he credits as one of the most important people in his life. He shared their reunion in this Instagram post.
“I’m just thankful for every moment that’s happening,” Barry said at the end of his interview with LionNation. “I’m just taking it day by day and enjoying it.”
You can see Barry’s full interview at LionNation.com.
