The Argentine-born play-maker has begun to settle into his new surroundings in China with Super League club Henan Jianye after his surprise exit from Adelaide United. 

The reigning Johnny Warren Medalist said he wants to return one day to the A-League – a competition which he credits for taking his game to another level. 

“People in Argentina said, ‘In Australia, you will never improve’ but actually the A-League improved my game," he told au.fourfourtwo.com from China. 

“A-League made me a better player. I wasn’t this player in Argentina or Chile. I had the technique but I could only run 70 minutes. In Australia I could run 90 minutes - or 120 in the Champions League."

Modest Flores described himself as only an "average" player with room for improvement.

“I will come back one day to try my best 100 percent for sure," he said. "I have a lot of things inside to give.

“I want to play much better football than what I did. I want to keep doing things for love,” he said.  

“I follow my heart but of course for the Adelaide supporters and the friends I made in Australia and Adelaide, it was really, really hard for me [to leave].

“I want to try make people smile, because this was always my objective. And maybe I have a lot of passion for Australia… passion don’t have a price.”

The 25-year-old received many messages of support since his shock exit from United, he revealed. It's an exit that affected him deeply.

“Mel McLaughlan called me from Fox Sports and said we will miss you," he revealed. "And I said ‘Mel, so sorry, I had to leave'. Mark Bosnich also called me saying please don’t leave.

“When I left, players cry. They hug me and know I was crying all week… my heart was really heavy when I caught the plane.

“I miss home and the Australian supporters.  All my life I will miss my year in Australia.”

Many insiders have speculated on the reasons why Flores exited Adelaide, and more details may emerge in time.

But as an analogy, Flores goes back to his childhood.

“You know when you’re young and your Mum call you at 7am to go to school?" he said. "This is not what you wanted but you had to do it, you know?”

Flores’ new CSL club Henan Jianye defeated Shanghai Shenhua 2-1 last weekend with the former Red setting up the winner. This week they take on Jiangsu Sainty.

 “Everyone is saying ‘Marcos Flores is good’ but this is just the beginning,” he vowed.

“It is going well, thank God. Straight away it was a really big shock of course. The culture is different but my people around me, my agent, the club, everyone, they fix my home.

“I joke that I make my home like DisneyWorld [with all the latest technology].

"This city doesn’t have a lot of foreigners so it’s hard. The language is a big problem but actually I love to learn different cultures and we’ve started playing and winning.

“I’m happy, it’s going well, I’m happy with my decision. But honestly, my friend, I don’t know my destiny but I will love to come back.”

Outside of football, Flores is continuing to design his own line of T-shirts with the help of his sister - a fashion designer in Argentina.

Flores is also working on a project to help Indigenous kids across Australia and continues to support the Johnny Warren Foundation’s principles.

“I don’t want to be Johnny Warren, I just want to follow his way,” said Flores, who recently ran clinics on behalf of the foundation when he was last in Sydney.

“I want to be part of his name for all my life."