TAMPA, Fla. (May 22, 2017) -- While any team’s roster carries its fair share of interesting storylines and player backgrounds, this year’s Rowdies U23 PDL team, quite literally, has a familial connection to its parent club, the Tampa Bay Rowdies.

Gabriel and Gustavo Fernandes, identical twins and younger brothers of Rowdies midfielder Leo Fernandes, are joining the U23s for the summer. Both Gabriel and Gustavo have admired their older brother for a long time and regard him as the driving force for their decision to come from thousands of miles away to play in Tampa Bay for the summer.

“I thought it was a great opportunity,” Gabriel said. “To stay with Leo and be with my brothers over summer while playing every day is incredible.”

Beyond just enjoying time spent together, both twins look up to Leo as an inspiration. Gustavo explains, “It’s a great feeling [to watch] Leo play…ever since he was at [Philadelphia Union] I’d go to his games and love it.”

"My brothers have always supported me in every phase of my career," said Rowdies midfielder Leo Fernandes. "To have them close by gives me the opportunity to spend more time with them and also help them as they continue to grow in their soccer career."

In many ways, Gabriel has taken much of what Leo has done in his career and applied it to his own game. In addition to sharing the same position of center midfielder, Gabriel also followed in his older brother’s footsteps by playing at Stony Brook University where Leo played from 2009 to 2012, earning a bevy of awards and notching 31 goals in 74 games.

Though he was redshirted this season, Gabriel intends to carry on his brother’s legacy at the school in coming seasons. Although Gabriel has emulated Leo in a variety of ways, he lends much of his playing style to FC Barcelona’s Sergio Busquets, who he praises greatly for his very “quick and direct” style of play.