As Valour FC’s training camp nears its end, an experienced journeyman is emerging as a favourite to grab the starting keeper job.
Jonathan Viscosi, 33, hails from Ottawa but has played professionally for over a decade, most recently with VPS in the Finnish Veikkausliiga last season, before arriving in Winnipeg and the chance to play in this country’s domestic circuit, the Canadian Premier League.
“It’s surpassed my expectations,” Viscosi said of Winnipeg. “What’s impressed me the most is the community. The people have a mentality that they work hard, they want to progress, take the city forward, and I’ve been taking that energy from that, and the team has to, as well.
“It’s a really good fit for a competitive mentality to go out and represent the city well.”
Viscosi first turned pro in 2010 with Albany BWP Highlanders and had stops with 13 different clubs before signing with Valour.
As Sunday’s opener in Vancouver approaches, Valour’s most-experienced pro is eager for the start of another season.
“It’s one of the best I’ve felt going into a season,” he said. “It’s been a shorter preseason than normal but maybe more intensive. There haven’t been many days off, and we’re at it every day. With the balance of physical load, conditioning, tactical play, and live situations, I feel really prepared going into it.”
Viscosi is getting currently witnessing the difference between the CPL and European leagues. He says the biggest change is preparation.
“In Europe there is a lot of continuation from the year before,” Viscosi said. “The concept of how they play evolves over time and it’s rooted to the development of the players and the position so it’s different in that sense.
“Here there’s a lot more initiative from the coaching staff to organize us and make our responsibilities clear. As players we take that on and try to fulfill it the best we can and try to lead that process.”
And leadership is something Viscosi will be counted on in 2024.
GM and head coach Phillip Dos Santos believes the veteran keeper will help bring maturity to a locker room still getting acquainted.
“It’s his experience,” Dos Santos said. “He’s been around and sometimes that’s important because you see in his game management the maturity and the ability to deal with situations and lead his back line. That’s something that we wanted when bringing Jonathan in.”
Viscosi’s arrival comes following the departure of Rayane Yesli, who played in 26 of 28 matches as Valour’s starting keeper a year ago, earning a Golden Glove nomination as the CPL’s best goalkeeper in the process.
So far Viscosi is loving his role on his new team.
This season is the first time he’s been the oldest player on the team and he’s trying to make to most of the opportunity.
“It’s going well,” Viscosi said. “I realize I’m a little bit out of touch with the younger players, but they’ve been super respectful. Many of them have come to me for some advice, and shown a willingness to learn from some of where I’ve been to pass things on to them is something I take pride in.”
Viscosi is excited to be back playing on Canadian soil. The last time he did so was back in 2011 with the Premier Development League’s Ottawa Fury. Since joining Valour, Viscosi has been enjoying the fans support at different team events and is excited for his first game at Princess Auto Stadium, which will happen on June 2nd.
Valour’s other option in goal is returning keeper Darlington Murasiranwa, who played in a backup role to Yesli last season, appearing in two matches for Valour.
This season marks his fourth year in the CPL, where he is looking to earn his first starting keeper job.
Dos Santos is still unsure which keeper he will go to for their opener.
“Just like the players, it will be who gives us the best chance going into games,” Dos Santos said.
“It’s a position where you hope you don’t need to make many changes throughout the year. We’ve told them it’s an open position.”
The competition in net will continue over the last few training camp sessions this week in Winnipeg, with Valour opening their regular season Sunday night in Vancouver.
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THE KEEPERS
Jonathan VIscosi, Darlington Murasiranwa
Returnees: Murasiranwa
Key stat from ’23: 92.8% — Yesli started 26 of 28 or 92.8 percent of Valour’s matches last season.
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Kieran Reimer is graduating journalism student at Red River Polytech.