Cavalry FC’s Victor Loturi transfer good for player, club and league

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The shoes left by Victor Loturi are big ones to fill by Cavalry FC.

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Quick ones, too.

But Calgary’s professional footie side is happy to try them on somebody else given that Loturi’s transfer overseas looks good on both the player and club — and even on the Canadian Premier League itself.

“It’s a wonderful situation for all parties,” said Cavalry GM/head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr. “The opportunity for him to go into an established European league like the Scottish Premier League is fantastic — the Canadian Premier League was designed to create opportunities for young Canadian players like Victor. 

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“For the club, it’s a part of our football business to create a transfer fee that can be reinvested into the infrastructure that we’re trying to build. And for the league, it just shows we’re living by our words — a league for Canadians by Canadians creating great opportunities.”

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Loturi, a quick-thinking, fleet-afoot midfielder, is living proof of that.

The 21-year-old Calgary native is off to Ross County FC, a member club of the Scottish Premiership in a transfer that sees Cavalry get money in return and the player further fulfilling his sporting dream.

“It means the world to me that I can finally go overseas and play my football and keep trying to hit the next level,” Loturi said. “I feel a lot of emotions but excited for this new opportunity.”

That next level would be a shot in the spotlight of the English Premier League or the equivalent in another European soccer-hungry nation.

“Yeah … hopefully stay in Europe and get to a higher and better league,” said Loturi, who came up through the Calgary Minor Soccer Association, representing both Calgary Northside United and Calgary Foothills before joining Cavalry. “The long-term goal would be to hopefully use this and play well and hopefully be a stepping stone to prolong my career.

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“But right now, I just want to focus on myself and focus day-by-day to make myself better.”

Meanwhile, his former mates are focusing on a club-record ninth straight CPL game without a loss when they roll into to play host Pacific FC in CPL action late Thursday (7:30 p.m., OneCanada, OneCanada.ca).

An extension by the Cavs (7-2-2) of their unbeaten streak would also mean an extension of their first-place standing in the loop. Heading into Wednesday’s action, Pacific (5-4-4) was the next-best team on the table with 19 points — four back of Cavalry.

The marquee match marks the Cavs’ second of nine games in 38 days.

“We will miss Victor,” said Wheeldon Jr. of the Cavs’ 2021 first-round draft pick out of the U SPORTS’ Mount Royal Cougars program. “What Ross County sees in Victor is a player who is technically accomplished. He can receive the ball with both feet, and he’s got a really good passing range. He likes the ball under pressure, so he was very significant in our build-out and our attacks. 

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“And also his energy is terrific. The joke here is two-thirds of the world is covered by water, the rest by Victor Loturi because he covers such great ground.”

And after making 45 appearances across all competitions for Cavalry following his debut a 17-year-old during the club’s inaugural 2019 season, he checks a bunch of boxes for the elite side based in Dingwall, Scotland.

“They were after a young, dynamic midfielder that could either be a defensive-minded one who could start the play or break up plays and play box-to-box, and Victor is that hybrid that can play either,” continued the Cavs gaffer. “The fact that he’s played almost 50 professional games as a 21-year-old also was of great value to Ross County knowing that he’s not coming out of academy ball like some of their players in Europe who have yet to play in full professional games.”

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An inquiry by the Scottish side led to negotiation between the two clubs, which have enjoyed a relationship since 2019, and — eventually — to this sale of Loturi.

“It’s a three-year-deal, so you know they’re invested in his future,” said Wheeldon Jr. “Ss we got going this season, they reached out to us. And Canada is a great well to fish in right now, especially with how well the men’s national team is doing.”

Turns out Cavalry might be the biggest well.

Loturi’s success as an under-21 player for the Cavs seems only the tip of the iceberg, given that Aribim Pepple — who has come alive with five goals in the last four contests — is only 19 and is now garnering sudden attention from overseas.

Their youngest phenoms, including 17-year-old Jean-Aniel Assi, who’s just back from playing on Canada’s under-20 team in the CONCACAF World Cup qualifying session, are all fitting in quite nicely, just as others have in the past.

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“We’re getting there,” added Wheeldon Jr. “We always have work to do. But in our short history, we think we’ve had decent success with young players. 

“It looks great on us. I use the analogy of Ajax in Netherlands, who produce championship contending teams year-in and year-out but are also able to sell off their players. It’s a healthy part of a sustainable business model. So we’d like to be one of those teams where clubs overseas are saying, ‘Those Canadian players are really good.’ And we want to be one of those squads they think of.”

FREE KICKS

Cavalry captain Mason Trafford will sit out Thursday’s match after collecting too many yellow cards on the season. After being flagged four times in the CPL, a player is automatically handed a one-game suspension … Cavs attackers Myer Bevan (hamstring) and Joe Mason (back) were missing from the lineup for Sunday’s 3-1 home win over FC Edmonton. Their selection for the roster in Langford, B.C., will come down to fitness testing ahead of the match … The Cavs are still down four long-term injured players — goalkeeper Tyson Farago (back), defender Tom Field (knee) and forwards Anthony Novak (ACL) and Fraser Aird (ACL).

tsaelhof@postmedia.com

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