You often hear of the sacrifices that players have had to make in order to develop in football and West Ham United's Swiss midfielder Noha Sylvestre is certainly no exception.
The 16-year-old central midfielder is already an integral part of the U18 squad, having started every game so far this season. Considering his commanding on field performances he is surprisingly soft spoken.
In his first-ever interview in English, he chronicles his career to date so far: "I was four when I first played football with my friends. I soon started to play for my village Sunday league team, and then I joined the Swiss academy a few years later."
The fact that Basel-born Sylvestre is now plying his trade for Hammers is testament to the wide-ranging scouting network in place at the club. As he explains: "Someone was watching a game I was playing for Concordia Basel Under-16s. He was looking at one of the strikers we had but he noticed me and said 'Who's that midfielder, the No6?' After that, I came for a trial and then joined the Club."
Since joining, Sylvestre has been on a steep learning curve as he moved away from his home town and had to adapt to the physicality of the Barclays U18 Premier League.
"The first month was very hard. Living without my family and friends, I left everything in Switzerland. But the team here have helped me a lot, they've been very good.
"When I came here I was really scared. I was concentrating really hard in training. It's very different to football in Switzerland. Football here is massive, it is the most popular sport. I really enjoy it here, it's magic.
"Football in Switzerland is famous but not as famous as in England. You can see in the street, everyone is talking about football the whole time. It's incredible."
When asked to choose what he believes are his best attributes, he says: "I think passing. I'm good at long-range balls as well as shorter passes. I prefer to make a good pass than score a goal."
It is this modesty, and the desire to put the team ahead of himself, that have made him so popular with his teammates and coaches alike.
Given his style of play, it is perhaps unsurprisingly who Sylvestre names as his role model: "My favourite player is Xavi Alonso, I think he is the best midfielder in the world."
Similarly to his idol, Sylvestre's skills lie in his range of passing as well as his willingness to do the so called 'dirty work' for the team, closing down opponents and tough tackling, Noha is enjoying his first season at U18 level.
"I just enjoy every game. We've got a very good team. We're playing really well at the moment, but I think we can still do better. I've enjoyed every single game so far.
Despite only joining the Hammers recently, Sylvestre feels he has already improved: "Of course, the tempo and the level of fitness required is a different level and I've definitely improved as a result.
"The coaches, Steve Potts and Mark Phillips, have really helped me. I think they're both very good coaches, I really like working with them.
"I like working with Terry Westley too. He's really dedicated and focused. If you ask him a question he'll take the time to explain things, he'll talk for 15 minutes if you need him to! It's really good to work with him."
While the Swiss has taken that advice on board and made an impressive start to the season as a first-year scholar, he is confident he can improve: "I want to play every game, I don't want to get injured, that's the first thing. I want to continue to work hard every day."