Colorado Rapids: What interested you the most about coming to Colorado to join the Rapids?
Paxten Aaronson: I think the first talk that I had with the club and the coach, and what they were kind of building here is what intrigued me the most about coming to the club—how it's building from a fresh start with Chris. That's what intrigued me the most after I walked away with that phone call.
CR: What is unique about MLS compared to what you’ve experienced in Europe?
PA: The travel is unique and the different variations of the teams that you get to play. In Europe, a majority of the time it's bus rides everywhere. Here, you're flying and constantly playing against teams from different sides of the of the country. That’s definitely the biggest difference.
CR: You’re joining a team with a handful of other players that have represented the U.S. National Team, are you close with, or have you played alongside anyone on the team?
PA: Yeah, I actually know a lot of guys in the locker room, to be honest. From youth national teams to first teams. Yapi, I played with at the U 20s. Cole Bassett, we were at some Olympic camps together. Josh Atencio, we went to the Olympics together. Reggie, I know. Zack, I was just at the Gold Cup with him. I think maybe I'm missing a couple more, but that's at the top of my head.
CR: How important is that familiarity with some of those players to step into a new environment?
PA: It's really nice because it makes you feel at home right away. That's also something I really looked at when coming to join the club. I think the American locker room and the sense of everybody with the same experiences in one locker room definitely intrigued me.
CR: You chose number 10. What excites you about taking on that responsibility from this club?
PA: It’s a big honor for me. Obviously, when you wear number 10, it's something you hold strong on the back of your jersey. For me, I grew up with number 10 on the back of my jersey. It was my number since I was a little boy, and finally getting to wear it at a pro level will be a huge honor for me. But I'm looking forward to the challenge of bringing that courageousness, bringing that flair to a player who wears number 10. I think it will be a great challenge.
CR: What’s your favorite soccer moment of your career so far?
PA: My favorite soccer memory would probably be the German Cup final in Berlin. We ended up losing, but just the experience and the atmosphere of the fans. I was fresh coming from MLS, so it was a totally different experience in Europe. So that’s probably one of my coolest memories.
