It took longer than expected but Rob Valentino has finally found home. The University of San Francisco standout left college early to pursue a career in Major League Soccer. Originally drafted by the New England Revolution, the powerful defender was traded to the Colorado Rapids. Valentino struggled to find time with either team and ended his 2+ year stint in Major League Soccer without making a single league appearance. After a year with the Tampa Bay Rowdies and several trials, Valentino signed with a likeminded team that would help him meet his potential: the Orlando City Lions.
(Image Courtesy of Orlando City SC)
Coming to Major League Soccer
Valentino received national attention while playing with USF. The Illinois-born player earned the captaincy during his freshman year and helped the team become the stingiest in the West Coast Conference in 2005 and 2006. Valentino collected personal honors those years as he was named the WCC Defensive Player of the Year his sophomore season and WCC Player of the Year his junior season.
The accomplishments helped generate interest from professional teams, even after he tore his ACL. MLS made the most enticing offer as they were willing to give him the highly coveted Generation Adidas contract.
“The agent I had at the time ended up working the deal out and at that point it was just if I felt comfortable enough with where I was in my rehab and where I was as a soccer player. At that point, I would have been coming off my ACL and not having any training in the prior 5-6 months.”
After much deliberation with his friends and family, Valentino decided to sign the contract. Officially a member of the 2008 draft class, Valentino began to field questions from several interested MLS teams. It was the Revolution, an unexpected suitor, that would add the 6-foot-3 defender to their roster with the 13th pick overall.
“I was pretty surprised actually. I knew (Revolution assistant coach) Paul Mariner from my days playing club soccer in Arizona. He was one of the coaches that I played against. So, we knew of each other. I had no dialogue with them prior to the draft or anything.”
Despite the surprise, Valentino was happy to join the Revs. On the same day as the MLS SuperDraft, the Revolution added veteran defender Chris Albright, which lessened the burden on Valentino. This meant that the rookie would have time to fully recover and adjust to the style and pace of MLS.
“(Revolution head coach) Stevie Nicol and Paul Mariner pulled me aside on our first preseason trip to Bermuda and they just wanted to let me know that there was no pressure on me getting fit right away. I wasn’t in the plans to come in right away and be a game-changer, I don’t believe. That was so key to me.”
Although Valentino showed progress, he struggled to regain full fitness. The aching ACL pain would return occasionally and he generally felt a step too slow.
“It didn’t heal as quickly as I wanted to. It didn’t heal as strong as I wanted to. It wasn’t until about year, maybe a little over a year, until after I got back that I was feeling like I was back playing the way I used to play.”
Although he regularly appeared in Open Cup and reserve games, Valentino found it difficult to make the game day 18 during league play. When he did make the bench, the defender would always be labeled as an unused substitute. The lack of playing time was frustrating but Valentino refused to let it discourage him.
“If I dressed in the 18 and didn’t end up playing, instead of going out with some of the guys I’d decide to stay in the hotel gym and do some running to make sure that I was fit and ready to go in case I did get called on.”
The call never came and Valentino concluded his rookie year without playing a league minute. Valentino, who decided halfway through the year that he didn’t want to be a bench player on an MLS roster, knew something had to change.
Searching for the Right Fit
The 2009 season started the same way that the 2008 season had ended for Valentino as the Generation Adidas player was still unsuccessfully fighting for minutes. Nicol, viewing Valentino as excess, had actively been trying to trade the talented youth so that he could fully develop. Nicol believed that Valentino had potential and recognized that New England wasn’t the right fit.
“He tried to move me to somewhere he thought I would get some playing time. There were talks with San Jose and there was a potential trade with San Jose that was supposed to go down earlier in preseason that year. Some time went by and Stevie said to hang tight and keep a good attitude and working hard and something will come up.”
On May 6, 2009, Rob Valentino was sent to the Rapids in exchange for Nico Colaluca. The move was done with the hope that both Generation Adidas players would be able to reignite their careers. When Valentino arrived in Colorado, however, he found himself in a familiar situation.
“When I got to Colorado, I was probably the seventh or eighth centerback they had. I worked really hard to get into the lineup. I got myself into the 18. Started dressing out a lot of the games. I seemed to be fitting in pretty well.”
With Corey and Gibbs and Ugo Ihemelu marshaling the backline, Valentino knew it was unlikely that he would be named to the starting 11. Regardless, Valentino remained focused and positive. As more time went on, however, it became clear that Valentino and head coach Gary Smith weren’t seeing eye-to-eye.
“We kind of butt heads a little bit. At the end of the day, I played there for 10-11 months and they put me on loan and while I was on loan they ended up releasing me. That was never part of the plan when they put me on loan.”
Valentino was scheduled to go on loan with the Tampa Bay Rowdies as a way of staying fit and sharp. Soon after arriving in the Sunshine State, Valentino received unfortunate news from Rapids technical director Paul Bravo. Bravo, who was actually responsible for bringing Valentino to Colorado, told the defender that his services were no longer needed.
“They pretty much asked me if I was okay (with being released). At the time, I was pissed. I didn’t want to be there anymore. I was pretty unhappy with how they treated me at the time so I said, ‘Yeah, please release me’.”
With the MLS season in full swing, Valentino had limited options and decided to sign with the team he was supposed to be on loan with. Valentino quickly noticed the starch difference between MLS and the lower division. The state-of-the-art facilities, including practice fields, gym and locker room, were gone. Valentino was now training at a park and changing in a swim team’s locker room.
“It’s a very humbling experience. At that time, I just really wanted to play. When I started getting playing time and I was an important part of the team, it made me feel welcomed.”
Valentino became an important cog for the Rowdies, playing almost every minute that season. His confidence was rising with every touch on the ball so Valentino decided he would explore other options once his one-year contract ended.
Finding Home
Valentino was considering his next career move when he was contacted by Adrian Heath, who was coaching the Austin Aztecs at the time. The Aztecs were relocating to Orlando and Heath was interested in acquiring Valentino.
“I tried to get back into MLS but that wasn’t happening. Adrian had called me when they were still in Austin. He said, ‘hey, we would like to have a look at you and if you’d like to come and join us we’d really like that’.”
The offer was tempting but Valentino had already booked a flight to Finland to trial with a team. Valentino kept his options open, however, by remaining in contact with Heath through email. After his trial in Finland, Valentino returned to Florida to workout with Orlando City, a team he immediately felt a connection with.
“Everyone was very honest and the way Adrian was very much suited my style of play. His personality was unbelievable. He was just so welcoming. All the guys were very welcoming. Everyone here feels very much like a family from the front office to the players. That was what I was yearning for.”
Valentino signed with Orlando City on March 31, 2011 and has been with the team ever since. Although the club is a part of USL PRO, a third division American soccer league, Valentino has always been and still is focused on returning to MLS. Orlando is rumored to be one of four teams that will join MLS in the near future and Valentino is hoping to be a part of the move.
“It is definitely my goal. I’ve stated that to them that’s exactly what I’d love to do. I don’t want to go anywhere else and I would love to able to make that jump with them.”
Valentino has already established himself as an important part of Orlando City. The club won the USL PRO Championship in 2011 and 2013 while having the best regular season record in 2011 and 2012. Valentino himself was voted Defensive Player of the Year in 2011 and was one of three Orlando City players to be named to the USL PRO first team in 2013.
Despite all of the success, Valentino, who is already under contract for 2014, knows that there is no guarantee that he will join Orlando City if they make the move to MLS.
“There aren’t many guys that make that jump with them and I think a lot of us are aware of that. We are all trying to do our part to be there. I’d like to be one of those guys like Sebastian Le Toux or Zach Scott.”
Until an official decision is made, Valentino will do what he has always done: keep a positive attitude and keep working hard.
“Sometimes I had those little doubts (about whether or not I’d make it as a professional) in my mind but I kept a very positive attitude. I’m a big believer in mental strength. When I was in college I was always reading books about mental strength and how to get my mind to be positive about myself. I think that’s what’s kind of pushed me to where I am.”
After years of hardships, a return to MLS would be monumental for the 27 year old Valentino.
“Anytime you face adversity and you end up coming up on top it’s always a lot sweeter.”
You can learn more about Rob Valentino by visiting www.OrlandoCitySoccer.com or by following him on Twitter (@Rob_Valentino).
