Auckland City's Fabrizio Tavano feels he has had a similar pathway to Chelsea star Cesc Fabregas.
The 21-year old Mexican forward left his home country when he was 15 in a bid to become a professional footballer just like Fabregas did when he joined Arsenal from Barcelona in 2003.
Tavano helped the New Zealand club qualify for the quarter-finals of the 2014 FIFA Club World Cup with a 4-3 penalty shootout win over Moroccan side Moghreb Tetouan on Wednesday and feels his move from Mexico to Auckland has so far been vindicated due to the side's progress in the competition.
"I identify with him," Tavano told FIFA.com in regards to the Spain international.
"Moving to another country on your own when you're 15 is not very easy at all, but my dream since I was a kid was to make it as a professional footballer."
Auckland City next meet Algerian club ES Setif on Saturday for the chance to play Argentine outfit San Lorenzo in the semi-finals but Tavano is not thinking too far past the next fixture.
"I can't describe how happy we all felt at getting this far, but we're all focused on going further than the club's ever managed," he added.
"Opportunities like this don't come around very often and we have to approach this game like it's the last one of our lives. Tiredness is not an issue.
"We all have to give it everything we've got."
