Editor’s note: This is the fifth in a weeklong series of player profiles for Minnesota United FC, which opens its season Saturday vs. the Carolina RailHawks in Cary, N.C. See also Kevin Venegas, Sammy Ndjock, Justin Davis and Ben Speas.

When Minnesota United FC traveled to Mexico for preseason workouts in mid-March, coach Carl Craig repeatedly asked his players: “Why do you play?”

The players wrote down their answers and helped achieve Craig’s objective of tapping into the core of each player’s motivation. Related Articles Minnesota United acquires striker Kei Kamara in trade with Colorado

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Forward Christian Ramirez, however, already holds dear his primary inspiration: family. His father Juan stopped playing soccer in Colombia and emigrated to the U.S. before Christian was born in Santa Ana, Calif., in 1991.

“He gave the sport up to provide a better life in the States for me and my family,” said Ramirez, who has three younger siblings. “That’s the main reason why I play: to give back and live out his dream that he wasn’t able to.”

Ahead of Saturday’s season opener, Ramirez is the fifth and final pivotal United player to be introduced this week. These players — Sammy Ndjock, Justin Davis, Kevin Venegas, Ben Speas and Ramirez — are considered cogs as the Loons ramp up to their Major League Soccer debut as soon as the 2017 season.

Ramirez shared with the Pioneer Press two other main motivations for why he plays: goals and trophies.

In two seasons with the Loons, the 24-year-old striker has scored a team-high 32 goals in 57 regular-season games. He earned the North American Soccer League’s Golden Boot for a tier-high 20 goals in 2014.

Last season, Ramirez’s scoring production slipped to 12 goals. “I was more focused on letting the players around me adjust instead of me asserting myself,” Ramirez said after a training session last week. “That has been different this year. I’ve asserted myself, and I know my role on the team.”

Ramirez’s team had its seasons stopped in NASL semifinal defeats in 2014 and 2015. “It sucks,” he said. “That’s another big motivation.”

In the offseason, Ramirez was reminded of yet another incentive when he randomly ran into U.S. men’s national team coach Jurgen Klinsmann at a Nike store in California. They exchanged phone numbers and later messages.

Back in 2014, when now-former teammate Miguel Ibarra was called up to train with the national team, Klinsmann commented how Ramirez’s play with United had also caught his eye. But thus far, Ramirez has been passed over for the nation’s top team.

“If guys are watching and I’m not playing well, then there’s no need to be in the conversation” about the national team, Ramirez said. “My job is to get wins and score goals. If the time comes to be called, I will take that opportunity.”

Ramirez also is keen on building a brotherhood with players from all backgrounds, including goalie Ndjock, who grew up with little family assistance in Cameroon and France. Ramirez said the quiet Ndjock has begun to express himself more.

“The biggest thing for me in this profession is to make sure that I grow in relationships and friendships,” Ramirez said. “A lot of the new guys get to see that we like each other and hang out with each other outside of the field. Whether it’s with girlfriends and us out to dinner or a night out on the town, we enjoy each other’s company.”