The Soccer Player Special

A perfect go-to meal inspired by polar cities in Italy for anyone active

Soccer has always been my savior during stressful times. Being able to still enjoy my passions, such as practicing, staying active, and re-watching old World Cup games, has been a unique process during this time due to the COVID-19 virus. One of the positives of the current international situation is coming up with drills to ensure safety in social distancing and improving my performance as an athlete with the help of my Italian Coach: Fredi. My little sister and I have been practicing soccer almost every day with our Coach because school has been moved online and now we have the opportunity to spend more time together; especially since I am now back home in Florida, away from my college, Emory University, in Atlanta. And just like many people around the country, we are taking this opportunity to accomplish our exercise and work-out goals. And all together we have a fun, safe, stress-free way to get outside and stay active through soccer. However, now that we are all exercising on a regular basis, a lot more than during the regular school year, we are needing to find new recipes for meals focused on refueling our nutritional desires and to enhancing our performance.

This recipe is inspired by both famous soccer players: Andrea Pirlo and my sister and my private Coach, Ferdinando De Matthaeis. Even though Andrea and Ferdi are from different parts of Italy, Flero in Nothern Italy and Alberona in Southern Italy, they both have played Division 1 professional soccer in New York for the United States. Coach Ferdi, now retired, played for the New York Cosmos, while Andrea Pirlo currently plays for New York City FC. And despite growing up in completely different regions of Italy, they both swear by traditional Italian dishes consisting of pasta, chicken, and tomatoes to best prepare them for minimum ninety-minute matches.

Growing up as a soccer player, we are taught in our nutrition classes the most efficient meals before a game consists of healthy carbs and veggies/fruit to make up more than ⅔ of the plate. The remaining portions leave space for our limited fat protein. A good tip I’ve learned for people who are active and choose a meat-based protein to replenish their muscles is to pay attention to the number of legs. Animals with fewer legs are more likely to have less fat and higher grams of protein than animals with more. For example: grilled fish or chicken can have between 20-24 grams of protein versus sliced ham which normally consists of only 5 grams of protein. Based on these rules, this is why the majority of most soccer players’ go-to meals are Italian and pasta-based dishes. In regards to cardio, endurance, and strength building workouts, it is important to ensure the dish revolves around complex carbohydrates. This Italian dish is perfect since the base ingredient consists of protein-filled ravioli pasta, which has the perfect balance of 24 grams of protein and 50 grams of carbohydrates to provide the body the opportunity to replenish its cells and heal its muscles in order to quickly recover, guaranteeing consistency in improvements while increasing one’s performance.

Overall this meal was a lot of fun to prepare and even more fun to eat, especially guilt-free. Some great components to this dish are knowing that each ingredient is helping my body improve and re-establishing all my hard work on the field, as well as being efficient in time and energy to properly prepare. Also, despite one’s experience in the kitchen, this meal is perfect for anyone at any age to cook! It was even more fascinating to hear my Coach, now retired, reflecting on his experience as a professional player and comparing it to current professional player, Andrea Pirlo. And despite their different origins in Italy, it was so interesting to hear how much they had in common, down to the professional teams they chose to play for in the United States! With my own personal reflection on where I am as a soccer player, it is quite funny to know we all want a good, satisfying meal, that is fast and simple, in order to cater to how tired and hungry we might be after a hard workout. I really am excited to now have my new go-to meal that is quick and easy to prepare and I hope you are too! Good luck on any workout journey and remember to stay safe while taking as many positives as you can from any situation!