Louisville City FC midfielder Mark-Anthony Kaye recently chatted with LouCity writer Caitlin Ladd for the second in a series of question and answer sessions with the club’s players.
(Also check out our last player Q&A with striker Chandler Hoffman.)
Kaye, a former Toronto FC II standout, has scored a goal and registered three assists in 15 matches this season for first-place LouCity.
What’s your favorite thing to do off the field?
My favorite thing to do off the field is probably cook. Nutrition is a big part of being an athlete, so being handy in the kitchen goes hand in hand with that. It’s something that I picked up and enjoy doing.
Do you like cooking for other people?
For sure! I cook for the roommates sometimes. I’ve been kind of lazy recently, but whenever I get the chance I cook for people.
If you could have dinner with anyone, who would it be?
I think I want to have dinner with Kevin Hart, because he would be so funny and it would be really nice to meet him. If I had a second choice, I’d choose Cristiano Ronaldo because he’s my favorite soccer player. It’d be great to sit down at a dinner table with him too.
What do you do to prepare for a game?
There’s a lot of mental preparation, but just getting in your own zone. Whether that’s listening to music or really going over what you need to do to help the team win. there’s a lot of different things you could do, but for me it’s just calming myself down before I get on the field and listening to some good songs.
Do you have a game day playlist?
It changes from day to day. Some days it might be an upbeat playlist and some days it’ll be some lyrical rap music like Drake. It just depends on the day.
Do you have any good luck charms or rituals?
I have a couple. One that I just started is I tape my wrist and put two numbers on it which is a focus point and helps me remember what my own goal is and what I’m trying to achieve here. If anything is going bad in the game, I can just look down at my wrist and it gets me focused.
How do you usually approach training or know when you’ve had a good day at training?
I approach it the same day in and day out. I like working hard, so I tend to try and do my best all the time. You know when you’ve had a good training session. You’re in a good mood. It’s a day-to-day thing, but overall you have to be positive when you look at it.
Do you have a favorite soccer memory?
I think my favorite soccer memory would have to be scoring my first professional goal when I was on loan to Wilmington Hammerheads from Toronto FC. That was a big moment in my career.
If you had to play another position, which would it be and why?
It would be center-mid. I like having the ball at my feet. I like being able to dictate the game. It’s definitely somewhere I could see myself in the future.
If you weren’t a pro soccer player, what would you be doing?
I’d still be in school right now. I’d probably be studying law or maybe be going to culinary school.
What’s your favorite sport other than soccer?
I would say it would have to be basketball. I grew up playing a lot of basketball as a kid and it was always easy to play — get a group of friends and just go to a hoop and shoot.
Where is some place that you’d like to travel?
I definitely want to visit Australia — beautiful country — on the opposite side of the world, too. That’s somewhere I think I’ll end up.
What are you hoping to do this offseason?
Hoping this season goes the way as planned, I’m going to take some time off and go on vacation. Something I really want to do is explore the world and see what it has to offer, not just in North America.
What’s one thing on your bucket list?
Cliff jumping somewhere. I don’t even know where yet, but I’ll find it.
What is your favorite TV show?
Right now it’s Game of Thrones, and another one is Dexter.
Do you have a favorite film?
My favorite movie is Interstellar because it blew my mind and you just start asking questions after the movie. Like “I can’t believe it,” and “I don’t know if it’s real or not.” That’s definitely a movie that I like a lot.
What’s one thing your teammates don’t know about you?
I started playing soccer really late — when I was 10, 11 — they might not know that. Maybe everyone thinks everyone grew up the same way-playing when you’re 4 to 5, but for me I started really late.
