Trying out with the club, Latendresse-Lévesque made his debut, Tuesday, in a 1-1 tie during a mini-match against local Portuguese players. The native of Chambly was caught off guard on a free kick in the first half.
“I was nervous, perhaps a little too much,” he admits. “It’s my first experience here and I have to show my talent, and that I’m capable of earning my spot. Allowing a goal like today stays in your mind for a few minutes but then you have to forget it and start from scratch.”
“What impresses me about Julien is his concentration and his work ethic,” says Impact goalkeeper coach Youssef Dahha, who first noticed the young goalkeeper four years ago, with the Quebec teams. “In nets he’s a man, but off the field, he’s still a boy”.
Latendresse-Lévesque, who is a goalkeeper since the age of six, was never intimidated by this key position.
“I was never afraid, except when I saw Youssef for the first time,” he adds, laughing.
A student at Sources High School in Dollard-des-Ormeaux, he's had to juggle his schedule considerably in order to continue his progression and to complete his high school degree. He regularly attends school and trains alternately with the Quebec Soccer Federation’s national training centre and the Impact, thanks to the Sports Etudes program.
For him, training with the Impact offered the best environment to finish his studies and to continue developing as a goalkeeper.
“The speed of play is a lot quicker than the training I’m used to with the national centre,” he admits. “But I think the main qualities you need is mental toughness. You need to be aggressive and you need basic technique, but after that, everything is in your head.”
“It’s a magical experience for me, to be training with Matt (Jordan) and Andrew (Webber) here in Portugal. It’s great and I’m also very proud to be representing Quebec. The training sessions are solid and we give everything we have.”
Julien is used to high-level training and has consistently played with teams above his age throughout his youth. This summer, he also went to Germany for a tryout with first division club Duisburg.
“We have to take things gradually,” says Dahha. “We have to think differently with him. We didn’t bring him to Italy because we know his priority is to finish school. We have to go step by step, or else we could burn him.”
Even if he never thought he would be training with the pros at 16, he does hope to make the U-20 national squad, perhaps even represent Canada at the Olympic Games and also take another crack at Europe.
In the meantime, he will continue gaining experience with the Impact in Portugal, while systematically hitting the books after practice. He will celebrate his 17th birthday next week.
PHOTOS PÉPÉ
-30-
Source: Montreal Impact
