What It’s Like to Play Against Messi as a Teen Living With Your Parents

Like any patient soccer mom, Agnes Zakrzewska spent a chunk of her day waiting in a parking lot outside a field in New Jersey earlier this month. When her teenage son, Julian, finished practice, Ms. Zakrzewska ferried him to a big event — his first road test to get his driver’s license.

He passed it, and they returned to their cozy two-bedroom apartment on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.

Three days later, on April 11, Julian Zakrzewski Hall was starting at forward for the New York Red Bulls inside a hostile stadium in Miami in front of 26,000 fans. He had turned 18 less than three weeks earlier and now was playing against Lionel Messi, the most famous footballer in the world. He even outplayed Messi, the Argentine star, assisting on two goals, including one brilliant pass to his friend and teammate Adri Mehmeti — another gifted teenager from New York City.

“I was more nervous getting my license, to be honest,” Hall said after the match. “It’s weird having a stranger sitting there watching everything you’re doing.”