Zach Fernandez’s first 24 hours in Winnipeg hours was stacked with hearty handshakes and welcoming back slaps, with a tour of Valour FC facilities, an introduction to staff, and the usual logistical dealings that come with joining a new team in a new city.

And if the veteran fullback was even the least bit overwhelmed by Day 1 as a member of Valour FC, he certainly hid it well after completing his first training session on Tuesday.

“Sometimes you need change to take another step forward,” he began in a chat with valourfootball.club. “That was part of my thinking about coming here.

“This is a change; a new environment and I wanted to get out of my comfort zone a little bit.”

The signing of Fernandez, one week into Valour’s training, created a bit of a buzz across the Canadian Premier League landscape as the club has added a quality defender who had made 78 appearances for HFX Wanderers over the last three seasons, chipping in with five goals and eight assists.

A proven commodity with excellent skills, Fernandez joins a quality fullback group that also includes Roberto Alarcon and Themi Antonoglou, two of the CPL’s best.

“Too often we’re thinking, ‘We already have a good player there.’ Yeah, we do,” explained Valour GM and head coach Phillip Dos Santos. “But that’s what good teams have — quality and depth.”

Another one of Canada’s top young full-backs is heading to Winnipeg

Zach Fernandez joins @ValourFootball ahead of the 2025 CPL season! #CanPL I @onesoccer pic.twitter.com/ZeQRjmjB6x

— Canadian Premier League (@CPLsoccer) February 25, 2025

Fernandez had hoped to land an opportunity in Europe or outside the CPL this winter knowing that if that nothing materialized, he had Valour beating down his door to come to Winnipeg. Fernandez said he had ‘a couple of CPL opportunities’ but ultimately settled on Valour after numerous conversations with Dos Santos.

“Phil had been calling me and I was really interested in the project here,” Fernandez explained. “So, with what he wants to do this season and the club’s ambition it was a good decision for me to come back here and then look again at Europe possibly in the next transfer window next season. It felt right for me to come to a team with the goals they have here and with the way they play football

“He’s a coach with a good game plan, a coach that really wanted me and that kind of relationship is important so that you can play freely and have good performances. This is my first day, but I like what I’ve seen. I like the intensity, and I like the feeling that this team really wants to build something. The conditions here are important, the small details matter, and everything is in place here.”

Dos Santos is intrigued by the quality and depth Fernandez obviously adds to Valour’s back line, but the versatility he offers, too, at the back and up the wing.

“It’s a big one for our quality, for our internal competition and even morale because we’re adding a good player,” said the Valour boss. “When you have a chance to get better by adding quality and a different characteristic in the fullback position you have to do it. That applies to every other position.

“It’s options. You don’t know what the season is going to bring or what might develop but we’re prepared for that. We’ve added some defensive depth and a quality and characteristic that is different than the one we have on the roster right now. You look at Zach in the last couple of years and he’s a lot more vertical whereas (Alarcon) is refined technically and sees the game very well. This allows us to utilize him in inside spaces, maybe tighter spaces, as opposed to Zach who is a lot more vertical and explosive going forward. It’s not that Rob doesn’t do that, it’s just two different players, two different styles. And in a roster that is a quality which is good to have.”