Noel Buck inspired by Diego Fagundez

Diego Fagundez may have left the club for greener pastures down in Austin but he continues to affect the New England Revolution organization.

On Tuesday the Revs announced that they had signed 16-year-old midfielder Noel Buck. Buck is now the second-youngest homegrown player to sign with the club since Fagundez.

The midfielder was asked about the impact of Fagundez on his career when he met with the media for the first time.

“I remember Diego because I remember when I was like 10, he came to one of my games when I was with my club team, NEFC, and I actually got his autograph on one of my cleats and I still have that cleat today, so he has played a major role,” said Buck. “He showed how to play at a very young age, and there’s a lot of people around the world that I take inspiration from. There’s a lot of young players and Diego Fagundez as well.”

Revolution fans will be hoping that Buck can have a similar career to Fagundez. The now 26-year-old spend ten seasons with New England tallying 53 goals and 45 assists. He was also the youngest player to record 100 appearances and 25 goals in league history.

Similar to Fagundez, Buck will have to navigate being a professional soccer player along with attending school. When asked about balancing his soccer and personal life, the 16-year-old said he is just like other players.

“Well, it’s just a commitment, and I’ve committed myself to this organization and I’ve always loved playing, I always loved being here,” he said. “All the guys are great people and I’m glad to be there with them. So, it’s not so much of a balance, because I have friends here as well, so the social aspect of my life is not in jeopardy playing a lot of soccer. But I know I have school I have to do when I go home and all that kind of stuff, but everyone here has an obligation to commit to outside of soccer, so it’s not too much different to everyone else.”