Burnley striker Lyle Foster has said that his dad quit his job in order to help Foster become a professional footballer.
Foster joined Burnley in January from KVC Westerlo in Belgium, scoring just the one goal in the second half of last seasons s Burnley won the Championship.
Now a Premier League footballer, Foster has already scored two in his opening three games, but recognises he would not be where he his today if it wasn’t for his parents.
“My father quit his job to make sure that I chase this dream,” Foster told the Go Bokke Times during a pre match press conference on Monday at Orlando Stadium.
“He has done it since I was young and together with my mother they sacrificed a lot. My mother still had to work while my dad was driving me and it was the perfect relationship.
“They are still my biggest support structure. Whenever I feel things are not going my way they are the first people I contact.
“My parents are the reason I am here and I am eternally grateful for everything they have done for me.
“I am only 23 now and there is still a long way to go, I feel I can still keep on achieving and fighting for more dreams.”
Foster keen to stay grounded
Foster refused to go into detail about how drastic the changes to his family were.
“They are the ones who have changed my life, they are the ones who sacrificed for me,” he said. “They are the ones who pushed me into football and made sure I was always at training and playing games.
“I don’t think it is fair to say I have changed their lives — they changed mine.”
“I always had good people in my life — my parents, my sisters, the coaches I grew up with and even the coaches I work with now,” Foster said.
“I have amplified the importance of staying grounded because anything can happen in football. God forbid, tomorrow I can break a leg.
“There is no reason for the humbleness but situations and experiences I have seen over my life forced me to be there.
“I would not have it any other way, it is a blessing to be here.”