Dear David,
Pleased to make your acquaintance. Can I call you Junior? Everyone else does, so, I hope that's cool.
I have to ask: Wow, what did you make of that Premier League season? What a roller coaster! What an ending!
Now, of course, things didn't go so well at Blackburn. Sorry about that. Given your long-time association with the club, it couldn't have been easy to endure those results, and the ultimate relegation -- not to mention the ongoing, sometimes-vitriolic responses from Rovers supporters. And the chicken. That was kinda weird, eh?
Things look bright for you, though. A true breakout campaign. You're being touted as one of the most promising young stars in the league. A very large piece of your heart resides in Blackburn, surely; but if you'd like to play Premiership football next season, someone will give you that chance. Suitors may even be lining up from the continent. Suffice to say, you've got a lot of potential, and a lot of important thinking to do.
But that's not what I'd like to talk about. Instead, I'd like to present to you the one reason -- the most compelling reason of all -- that the time has come to pledge your international playing career to the nation of your birth.
[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
Let me be clear, though. I'm not here to beg or plead with you, on behalf of myself or fellow Canadian supporters. That would be beneath all of us, and not a particularly effective bargaining tool. But I should say -- and here I am speaking on behalf of the majority of my fellow supporters -- that we want you to suit up for Les Rouges in World Cup qualifying.
If Canada is to finally get back to within touching distance of the World Cup tournament, we will need a spark in this qualifying campaign. And you, Junior -- you just might be that spark.
Whatever anyone may have ever told you about what's transpired in Canada in the years you've been away, or where the mood of supporters may sit, trust me: Your arrival on our national-team roster would be welcomed with the most open of arms.
We know you have some very important decisions to make in your personal life. You've been steadfast in saying that you'd only decide on your international career once your club career is sorted. Frankly, we're thankful for that. Whatever happens, no one could ever accuse you of having lied to Canadian supporters.
Now, though, you've come to the moment of truth. The most important decision of your club career will be made in the following months. But now is also the time when your homeland needs you like never before.
When it rains it pours, as they say.
I won't lecture you about patriotism or social contracts or any of the similar issues that get dredged up in situations like this. Only you ultimately know how you feel about Canada. Only you can ultimately decide how you feel about playing for the country, and how highly that would rank on your list of priorities.
The decision can't be made by your teammates, the fans or anyone else around you. Only you know what's in your heart.
Nonetheless, let me tell you what Canada can offer: The potential to be an absolute national sporting hero. The chance to be a truly transcendent and inspirational athletic force throughout an entire country -- a country with nearly a million children playing the same game as you -- is something that no other nation, and no club team, could ever offer you.
Bringing yourself into the Canadian camp -- and, potentially, being one of the driving forces behind sending us back to the World Cup for the first time since 1986 -- would be a watershed moment for our country. Kids from coast to coast would know that there is light at the end of the tunnel, that representing this beautiful country of ours is a legitimate end game for their footballing dreams.
And, of course, you would have the chance to perhaps do something that only a handful of players in history have ever done: Score their nation's first-ever goal in a men's World Cup.
I'm getting way ahead of myself here. Sorry, as a Canadian soccer supporter, I have a tendency to get carried away. But with all of the excitement and momentum in the country these days, around the professional game, around our national teams, around long-awaited reform in the governing body... it's tough not to dream big.
I can't pretend to know what's going on in your head these days, Junior. Nor could anyone else. You have some very important decisions in the immediate future. And, as luck would have it, Canada has some very important games in the immediate future.
Whatever path you ultimately take, Junior, you will always be Canadian. If that path doesn't include the Canadian men's national team, there will be disappointment. Resentment, even. But your life will go on, and so will ours. So will the team's.
Still, deep down, you must know that joining your countrymen at this juncture would produce something truly special, something that you could not experience or replicate on any other career path you could choose to take.
We know you've got a lot on your plate, Junior. We just hope you make your decision based on what you truly believe is right.
We hope to see you on the pitch soon -- in Canadian colours, of course.
.