SAN JOSE — Matheus Silva’s Major League Soccer debut lasted only five minutes as a late substitute in the Earthquakes’ season-opening victory last weekend.

But the time on the field was “priceless” for a 19-year-old Brazilian who just three years earlier stepped off an airplane in Florida without speaking English. A challenging soccer journey that started in a Sao Paulo favela has landed in San Jose with promise for one of the least-known players on the roster.

“He sacrificed everything he had to follow his dream,” said Mike Potempa, Silva’s high school coach at Florida’s Montverde Academy. “It means so much more than just playing.”

Silva has no idea whether he’ll make the 18-man roster Sunday when the Quakes face reigning MLS Cup champion Portland at Avaya Stadium. But the first appearance has fueled hopes that he’s on the right path.

“A lot of people see me as a kid, but I don’t think so anymore because I’ve made decisions a man can make by himself,” said Silva, a 6-foot-2, 198-pound central midfielder/defender.

Perhaps the biggest decision was agreeing to leave football-loving Brazil in 2013 to pursue education and soccer in the United States.

Silva grew up in a slum — or favela — in the Sao Paulo suburb of Taboao da Serra. The dangers of Brazilian favelas have been well-documented in film and literature. Silva witnessed much of the ugliness: drug trafficking, thievery, having friends die.

The experiences shaped him, but Silva doesn’t like to recount painful memories.

“Even though you’re in a favela, I learned so much being there,” he said. “Have your own mind and don’t listen to people. That’s what made me come to the U.S.”

Silva credits mother Marcia Silva for choosing the more difficult path away from the slums. The nurse wanted her son to focus on school, not soccer.

“I never wanted to come to the U.S. to study,” he said. “My mom showed me the good parts.”

In Brazil, kids must choose between soccer and education because they are identified as pro material at such young ages. Silva never got noticed by local soccer clubs, which led him to excel at indoor soccer (futsal).

Silva’s life started to change after attending a soccer event in Rio de Janeiro where friends of Potempa met him. They called the coach about sending Silva to the elite boarding school in central Florida.

At the time, Silva didn’t realize that Potempa had created one of the country’s best high school soccer programs. Conversely, Potempa didn’t know much about Silva’s soccer potential.

The Silvas received financial aid so their son could stay for two years, including summer school.

“Most of the soccer players my age think it is a waste of time,” Silva said of getting a high school degree. “But for me, it’s just a game. You never know what is going to happen in the future.”

Despite the beautiful setting that resembles a small college campus, the teen struggled to adjust to his new environs. Silva once told his coach, “This is my mom’s dream, this isn’t mine.”

Potempa seemingly won over the defender, who received almost 20 college scholarship offers. Yet, Silva announced he’d return to Brazil and join his father’s construction business if college soccer were his only option.

“He was just lost, really,” Potempa said. “He said, ‘I don’t know if I want to play anymore.’ “

Potempa had to work on the defender’s confidence more than mechanics. The coach realized the teenager was so afraid of disappointing others that he didn’t try to reach his potential.

Finally, Silva accepted a scholarship to Saint Louis University, then set out to join seven other Montverde players who had turned professional in the past three years.

First, he got a tryout with expansion New York City FC but didn’t fit the club’s plans. Next, Silva spent 10 days at Spanish side Villarreal, but passport and visa issues sabotaged a chance to stay. After that, he joined San Jose for part of the 2015 preseason.

Coach Dominic Kinnear and his staff liked what they saw. Silva returned to Montverde to graduate before the Earthquakes used an international slot to sign him last summer.

“There is no limit for me,” Silva said. “I know the best is yet to come.”

Contact Elliott Almond at 408-920-5865. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/elliottalmond.