NorCal Premier PDP Wants to Go All the Way

Gothia cup

The American team from Northern California has big dreams.

After a win against IFK Gothenburg, NorCal Premier PDP, playing in the G17 Elite Group 2, secured their second group stage victory in the tournament. Despite a good performance, the team is not satisfied, they want to go all the way to the final and take home the gold.

The US team showed what a great team they are after beating IFK Gothenburg 4-0. Something that was inspiring to see was that the team never stopped fighting, but ran just as hard when they were up 4-0 as they did when they were down 0-0.
– We really want to win the whole tournament. That’s why it’s important that we never give up or get comfortable, even if we’re ahead by 4 goals. Our mentality is to give everything until the final whistle, says Stella Monberg, who is a striker for the team.

Besides the fun of winning, she says it’s also nice to meet teams from the other side of the world.
– It’s really cool to play against players from other parts of the world. We don’t always understand each other, but football brings us together, that’s nice, she continues.

Now it is time for the team to go back to the school where they are staying, eat and rest for the next match. Recovery is something that is important during the Gothia Cup with many matches in a few days, especially for teams that have traveled far to get here.
– We flew from California and had a stopover in Munich. At first we were tired, but we traveled here 4 days before the tournament started to get used to Swedish time. Now we feel fresh and rested, Stella says enthusiastically.

Besides football, the Gothia Cup offers many players a completely new city: Gothenburg to be precise.
– Gothenburg is a great city. It’s cool to see how different it is compared to home. For example, I’ve noticed that it’s much more common to take the bus here than at home. There are also a lot of beautiful buildings, Stella adds.

When asked what she was most looking forward to during her stay in Gothenburg, there was no doubt about the answer.
– I’m looking forward to getting far in the tournament and reaching the final. It would be nice to play in front of a big crowd, she says and laughs.