Marcelo Balboa Quotations

I have a hard time talking about myself. It was much more than just an individual, ... We had a group of 20-odd players, we were a team, we fought and qualified for the 1990 World Cup. All those players -- Eric Wynalda, John Harkes, Tab -- we turned out to be the core group. We sacrificed a lot to make sure that soccer took off. We played in front of maybe 5,000 fans on a good night. But I enjoyed every minute. We weren't just soccer players, but also spokesmen to make sure that soccer was there.

If I happen to do (a bicycle kick), it'll probably be the last thing I do on the field, because I won't be able to move afterwards,

Going into that stadium and getting a tie was phenomenal, ... That was the best we have played as a team being a man down. We knew we were doing a good job when we started knocking the ball around and the Mexican crowd was cheering 'Ole, Ole!!' That day, we left with the attitude that we were back in it again.

He was like a second father to me,

I say, 'Thank you, God, for keeping me and my wife alive to be able to see my son being honored at the Hall of Fame,'

You always want to end your career in the jersey you started, ... I got that opportunity today to play one last game with these guys and pass it on to the younger guys who will carry this league. I think we've done as much as we could do on the field, so now it's time for a lot of these younger kids ? the Eddie Gavins, Landon Donovans, DeMarcus Beasleys ? to take the reins. We can work on the outside ? become the coaches, the GMs, the guys who run U.S. Soccer.

We've got a lot of years ahead of us to do some good things in Colorado, especially with the stadium in 2007,

People ask me about that more than anything,

As a player I was always labeled as Rambo or the guy who crushed people at the back, ... You never really knew how the media thought of you. The fact that they voted me in on the first time, it's a real honor.

You're not gonna get respect from Mexican fans until you start beating Mexicans teams. It translates to winning.

It'll be the perfect ending to a perfect weekend, ... I'll get to spend the weekend with my family, share a bunch of stories, get emotional during the ceremony and top it off with some soccer.

They look at our league as Americans running and athletic. They look at their league as more technical.

I never really studied the game. I just watched tape of who I had to cover. That was my studying.

In order for us to control our destiny, we have to have our own venues. It's about entertainment off the field and entertainment on the field. We're rewarding the people here in Colorado who have supported us by giving them a home,

Being able to (come back) was a special moment,

Being here and realizing the gentlemen that are over here and the pre-NASL guys, I'm humbled and honored to be in the same group as you guys are in right now.

And if anyone on our team said they did, they'd be lying, ... But as our careers went on, we started to hear more about the Hall. As a player, you always want to leave your mark. And with the Hall, people will have a way to remember us.

I was always taught as a kid if you do something, do it right. If not, go do something else. For me, soccer was life.