MetroFanatic: Connor, you're the elder statesman of the homegrown players.
Connor Lade: (laughs) Yeah.

MF: You've been here for a while, lots of playing time, little playing time, platooning, now a new contract...
CL: Yeah, it's been a little weird. I still feel like it's one of my first seasons here, but I guess I'm a little older now.

MF: You still look young, though.
CL: (laughs) I appreciate it.

MF: Once the hair goes, that's the end of it.
CL: I'm gonna hold on to that with dear life. I'm happy to have re-signed here.

MF: Do younger guys look up to you?
CL: I guess, in theory, maybe they look up to me. In reality, they are looking down on me.

MF: (laughs)
CL: I'm trying to be a positive voice for them.

MF: In your rookie year, Thierry Henry gave you lots of praise. Did that help you in the long term?
CL: It's always nice when a player of that caliber has nice things to say about you. It was a great first year, and kinda unexpected. I didn't really have any expectations coming here, so everything that happened was great. I will never complain when someone like that has great things to say about me.

MF: There was a perception before that homegrown players don't really do well with this club, with you maybe being the lone exception. But now, do you feel the perception has changed?
CL: Of course, of course. Ali and Jesse put in a huge, huge focus on our academy program, they've totally transformed not only the way we do things, but also how we look at them. Whether it's signing homegrowns, or bringing them for training over the summer, when they are back from school. You can tell by the number of guys they signed, and how they're doing. The academy is really growing, many steps since I've been there. It's always exciting to see, you always want guys from the area that do well.