Why Niko Sigur chose to play for CanMNT 🇨🇦 instead of Croatia 🇭🇷

Nico pleasure to chat with you how thrilled are you to be called up for Canada uh pleasure to speak with you as well uh very excited very excited to be here uh my first a national team Camp my first time uh wearing the Canadian jersey so far it's been very very good a lot of familiar faces a lot of new faces uh a lot of new ideas with the coaching staff uh training's been going really well so uh I just hope that I can experience a lot of good moments here uh we're in the Canadian maple Le what does it mean for a kid from BC to be able to finally get that Maple Leaf sh uh very very exciting again I know there's not a lot of uh BC boys in the team I think it's just myself and and Joel Waterman or you can even count Alistair if you want but uh yeah I think BC has a lot of a lot of good players um I'm happy I can represent BC as a province I think there's going to be more more players coming through the pipeline and uh I'm I'm happy I'm one of them has this happened even quicker than you would have thought Nico I know you're a very ambitious guy but wasn't that long ago we saw you playing at York in University and now you here playing for a for a national team is even with your own Ambitions do this come quicker than you imagined to be honest it it did come quicker than I than I imagined I always knew that it was it wasn't a matter of uh if it was just a matter of when and and with my story I I went to college I think it was just 3 years ago and now to be able to play to play for the a national team of Canada it's it's happened really fast but I've enjoyed every minute of it and uh I just hope I can continue like this you mentioned your story your proud history and the Croatian descent there's a lot of fans in Canada that were absolutely thrilled when you decided to to make that change maybe just talk to me a little bit about the decision that you and your family came to to to decide on that yeah look I I just want to say first in foremost that I have the utmost respect for Croatia and the Croatia national team uh they've been nothing but good to me and throughout this process they're really understanding but it got to got to a point where I felt like this was the decision I wanted to make my family was very understanding and uh this wasn't something that anyone forced upon me it was 100% my decision and I'm very happy with it it must be really hard though like I'm from England and I'm from Canada and I feel 5050 right through the so it must to ask a 20-year-old to make that decision must be really difficult though because you're entitled to feel that you're you from both yeah look if if if there was a rule that I could play with both national teams maybe maybe I'd do that but uh I had to make a decision and growing up and playing my youth soccer in Canada I have a very uh strong relationship with Canada all my family and friends live there so uh yeah as much as I am creation I am Canadian and I love Canada and I love uh Croatia but I wanted to play for Canada what was that Canada Croatia game in the World Cup like for you was that uh celebrating everything and every goal uh to be honest that was when I just came to to Croatia and at the time let's say I was very Canadian at the time I didn't know the language very well U my teammates were giving me some stick but uh it was all it was all fun and jokes and uh I thought Canada did really well against a very top creation team but uh yeah it it was very funny in the time because I just got to Croatia and and I got a lot of a lot of jokes made after that game but yeah let's talk about your journey to hauk split you've been playing a lot and you've been playing well um I think I was watching a game recently where you made a great run down the right hand side I thought for sure you got an assist I don't know how the striker missed it when you crossed it into the box but how how is your uh performan has been yourself how how are you evaluate your performances so far for for the club this season and and last uh I think going off of last season I had a very strong year uh I think I only missed two or three games and that was from uh suspension but last season I had I had a really good season I was playing a lot of right back but also got into the Midfield as well uh this season I've been struggling with some injuries I've been unlucky in the preseason to have an ankle injury and then I I started getting my fitness back I was probably going to to start a game in the European uh the European conference league and then I I tore my quad so this is this is the probably the first time I've had to face these challenges but uh I'm getting back to full match Fitness now and uh hopefully that I can I can build off last year and be even better and how big is it to play intense games for an intense club and a great fan base like that every game where it's so competitive yeah I think uh leaving hauk if it when that day comes uh it'll be easy because there's just there's just immense pressure uh there's always there's always that uh that feeling that we want to win the the championship after so many years and that every game is a must- win uh this year we we came off to a little bit of a a tough start but we're we're picking it back up and I think we're going in the right direction and and the fans are are very very tough on us but I think that's good because it it motivates us to to be the best we can and and like I said we're going in the right direction so we're going to go where we need to go and how is that environment that play place your teammates the coaches how is how have they made you a better player not just technically but mentally look I think when you're a young player going into a first team uh the older players can be can be very critical maybe some players don't deal with it as well but for me I I I just got better I felt like I got better you obviously you have players that put an arm around you but you also have players that give you a little bit if you're starting to make some mistakes but that's something I like because I want to be pushed I want to get better and obviously I'm playing with some very good players in huk Split as well as last season when I made my my debut the season before so uh it's high pressure it's very good players around you but I think that's an environment to uh to become great and you mentioned the two positions you play do you have a pressure reference do you enjoy both I do I do enjoy both uh I played I think more right back at the professional level but growing up I was always a midfielder uh as long as I'm on the field I'm happy so we'll see going forward in the national team and huk where I'm put but most important is that I'm playing how excited are you for this uh camp and these opponents Canada obviously just came off a a very important and very successful summer against some real Top Class teams and now carry that momentum into playing the two other Giants of conquer CF how big is that for the national team and what's been the messaging so far in Camp about how important it is to play the US on Mexico here yeah Jess has said that uh we can't build off the cop America we have to even take it a step further um so we're we're playing against two of the best teams in our region there's there's really nothing nothing to hide we have to show how how good we are and how that we're the best in in conaf and I think there's no better place to do that against USA and Mexico as I know they're friendlies but every game is important and and we need to win these games last couple for you you mentioned uh some of the teammates that you get to know how is it working with alist Johnston on that right side and learning from someone who's playing you know Champions League level football now yeah I was talking with Alistair these days uh he he was actually born in and lived a bit a bit in Vancouver but I've been following aliser he's a he's a very he's a top right back I think it's similar that he he used used to play in the Midfield and then he made the switch to right back so I'm sure I I'll talk to him more but from what I've seen he's a very hard worker he likes to get stuck in he's intelligent and uh yeah I think working with him will make me a better player Nico we expect to see you play at some point in the next couple of games have you allowed yourself to think what that moment would be like when Jesse calls your number and you put that shirt on and you get out there yeah I mean just you saying that I get some Goosebumps but I've been waiting a long time for this day I'm I'm G to be patient if it's against the us if it's against Mexico if I play 10 minutes if I P 20 if I don't play at all I'm I'm ready for whatever whatever he asks of me if it's a right back in the Midfield uh I just want to put on this jersey and and get going and and I'm ready for it and who do you think of when you've made this journey obviously a proud football family like like who who do you think of in these moments when you when you get to do that uh just just my family in general they they came to Canada my grandparents around 60 65 years ago uh growing up in Canada all the sacrifices my family made my parents uh cousins my sister everyone just this is going to be for them and uh I want to show everyone that I'm I'm serious and I'm I'm here to to make a name for myself well look we can't be happier that you've made the choice to become Canadian for the for the national team it's the pleasure to get to know you to shat with you a little bit more and uh good luck in the next couple of games and I'll see you down the line okay pleasure talking to you thank you pleasure thank you niov