Earlier this year, Luke Rodgers completed a dream move to the New York Red Bulls. Here he tells Kris Heneage about settling into a new culture...
I remember the day I received the news my visa had been granted on appeal. I was stood outside the US Embassy in London, excited to know that I was now on my way to New York. To say itâÂÂs been a whirlwind few months would be an understatement.
I still canâÂÂt believe IâÂÂm training alongside the likes of Thierry Henry and Rafa Márquez. IâÂÂve watched Thierry for years in the Premier League, heâÂÂs one of the best goalscorers the Premiership has seen.
HeâÂÂs on fire in the league right now as well with nine goals already, making him the league's top scorer. His goal against New England was classic Henry, cutting in from the right before sliding it home.
Unfortunately I had to come off after 60 minutes with plantar fasciitisâ basically a tightness in the arch of my foot. I hadnâÂÂt trained all week but it was a great result for us and put us right back at the top of the table. Unfortunately the injuries kept me out for most of the month meaning IâÂÂve been been partaking in the most frustrating side of football: watching it!
I actually made the shortlist with Márquez, Henry and three other team-mates for the MLS All-Star side. I would have loved to play against Manchester United on July 27, as it would have been a nice warm-up for our games in the Emirates Cup at Arsenal in July⦠and itâÂÂs my daughter's birthday the day before.
My family have been over to visit me and were also able to see me play, which is nice. Everyone at Red Bulls have made my transition here really smooth and I canâÂÂt thank them enough. IâÂÂve also had some of the English lads like Sam Craven and Sam Stockley at FC New York [a third-tier team inaugurated this year] to relax with, which is always nice.
When IâÂÂm not playing or training I like to go out into the city with the lads and do some shopping or get food. WeâÂÂve been to see the New York Knicks once or twice with a few of the other lads. The whole country was gripped with the NBA finals â even I got involved, whereas back home IâÂÂd probably struggle to watch more than two minutes.
Titi takes in some b-ball at Madison Square Garden
There really is so much to do here every night of the week. Adele was here recently performing at Madison Square Garden. YouâÂÂre never bored in New York, thatâÂÂs for sureâ¦.
And football, soccer, whatever you want to call it, is massive here. On average we get 18-20,000 for a home game; when we played LA Galaxy it was a 25,000 sellout. No disrespect to Notts County, as I loved it there, but I was playing in front of at most 7,000.
It truly is a huge sport here and itâÂÂs constantly growing. The LA game was a great experience as we came away with a point and I met David Beckham, with whom I exchanged shirts.
With America being so big we have to fly to pretty much every game, which in itself can be quite tiring â my longest journey in England was maybe Plymouth or Carlisle. The club is really good about getting you there just before the flight to reduce your wait time. I normally just get out my iPad and have a bit of craic with the lads to pass the time. IâÂÂll be honest, I love travelling â seeing all the new places and that kind of thing. The other week I got to go up the famous Rocky steps in Philadelphiaâ¦
"Cor, there's loads of 'em..."
IâÂÂve had a few former team-mates ask me about MLS, what America is like and the quality of the league in general. IâÂÂm always honest and personally I think itâÂÂs similar to the Championship both in terms of quality and attendance.
But there are also some great players here. Looking at the squads available youâÂÂve got the likes of Juan Pablo Angel, Eric Hassli, Julian de Guzman and David Beckham. TheyâÂÂre all quality players that could do a job in EuropeâÂÂs top leagues. To play against them is a real pleasure and I feel really lucky to be able to do it.
ItâÂÂs not all great, though: just like any foreign player I do miss things from home. Even though IâÂÂm in New York, the best city in the world, I just canâÂÂt get brown sauce out here. Thankfully I get my family to bring it over for me. What is it they say: "You can take the boy out of Birminghamâ¦"
