Soccer is played in nearly every part of the earth. A player’s ability can take them around the globe in search of the right fit to play the beautiful game. Just ask Fort Lewis College men’s soccer player David Citron.
The junior midfielder born in Toulouse, France, and raised in Poitiers, France, traveled across France during his youth as he developed his skills. He went to South Carolina to start his college career at Division I Presbyterian College. Now he finds himself in Southwest Colorado starring for the Skyhawks’ men’s soccer team in his second year with the program.
Citron is second on the team with six goals, first on the team with 10 assists and first on the team with 22 points. At 5-foot-8-inches and only 151 pounds, Citron’s skill and speed are always on display. He plays at his own pace and his intelligence is on display with his decision-making.
“He's really hit his stride,” FLC men’s soccer head coach David Oberholtzer said. “Obviously, from a stat standpoint, he has been one of the most effective players in the conference this season.”
Citron was introduced to the game by his older brother and started playing when he was five at his local club. He comes from a family of athletes with his mother, Sandrine, playing handball and his father, Xavier, running cross country. He played with his local friends when he was young. Then, during his teenage years, Citron played for Chamois Niortais Football Club in Niort, France, about an hour away from Poitiers.
“When I was young in my small club, I was the best with my brother,” Citron said. “When I got into the Chamois Niortais, I was like the average player. I was more like a defensive player and then I came to the U.S. and I was more like your offensive player.”
At Chamois Niortais, Citron lived away from his family. He first thought of coming to the U.S. to play when an agency came to his academy and presented the idea of going to college and playing soccer in the U.S. He realized he wasn’t going to sign a professional contract out of the academy and decided to go the college route through the agency.
Citron got connected with Presbyterian College via the agency and headed to South Carolina for his freshman year. He played in 15 games and scored one goal with two assists.
It was a cultural adjustment for Citron with the people, quality of the food and the weather in the U.S.
Presbyterian had a good year and went 10-5-2 in Citron’s freshman year. Citron’s coach, Jonathan Potter, left to go to Robert Morris University. The new coach wanted to play with more physical players and didn’t want Citron on the roster so Citron went into the transfer portal.
Oberholtzer was connected with Citron thanks to a contact he’s had for a while with a French recruiting agency. After his time at Presbyterian, Citron knew U.S. college soccer was a lot more physical than he was used to in France. But he liked the style Oberholtzer and his staff played at FLC and came to Durango.
Citron played in 20 games last season and had two goals and five assists for the Skyhawks. He was on the RMAC All-Tournament team. Despite this, Citron wasn’t very confident in his abilities in his first year with FLC. But he stayed in Durango for the summer. Citron continued to play, work on his fitness and his defense.
His fitness training has paid off. Citron is one of four players on the roster to have played in every game this season. The Skyhawks returned the majority of last year’s team and Citron has jelled with his teammates. He said having a locker room full of other guys from Europe and outside the U.S. has helped him. His girlfriend, who he met at Presbyterian, transferred to FLC and has been a part of a great support system for him.
“It comes from the team, obviously and the coaches too,” Citron said about his success this year. “They trust me and my teammates trust me and give me the ball more than last year … when they were maybe more hesitating.”
Off the field, Citron likes to go downtown with his girlfriend and go to restaurants. His favorite soccer teams to watch are Barcelona and Arsenal and he enjoys watching Bernardo Silva and Antoine Griezmann. Citron is majoring in Business Administration and is happy to have a that degree as a second option after soccer.
“He's just a really sweet kid,” Oberholtzer said about Citron. “He's always got a smile on his face, really polite and respectful. Just a joy to be around. In the locker room, he's the same; he brings a positive energy to the group. He enjoys the game. He loves playing.”
FLC is in the RMAC Tournament Championship game against CSU Pueblo. Citron wants to win it this year and make it to the Division II NCAA Tournament.
If the Skyhawks do advance to the NCAAs, Citron won’t have a lot of time to hit the restaurants downtown. He’ll be putting his name and talent on the national stage after a global journey playing the game he loves.
bkelly@durangoherald.com
