Windsor teen off to Vancouver academy
Facchineri headed to Vancouver after an invite to join Whitecaps program
When a precious invite to join the Vancouver Whitecaps soccer academy came around a second time, Windsor’s Gianfranco Facchineri jumped on it like a loose ball in the penalty area.
A little too young at 14 to take on a move to the West Coast and live with a billet family last time, Facchineri is ready for the challenge two years later.
He leaves next month for at least a year of training and development with one of the best academies offered by a Major League Soccer club.
“A lot of times they won’t offer a spot if you’ve turned them down before,” said Facchineri, who has been playing for Michigan Vardar in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy, considered a top-tier youth league in the United States. The Whitecaps first evaluated Facchineri along with five other candidates for their residency program, but last March it was a solo audition for the six-foot-one centre back. “He gives you the stereotypical leader at the back,” said Andy Day, head coach of the Whitecaps U17 team Facchineri is joining. “He’s aggressive, he’s a good communicator and his body language is very confident. He’s a natural defender.”
The Whitecaps organization foots the bill for Facchineri’s training at their facility on the campus of the University of British Columbia and his stay with a nearby billet family. A 90-plus per cent student, he’ll continue his studies at a high school that’s also located on the UBC campus.
The former Holy Names student is one of six new players invited to join the U-17 team, of which only three hail from outside the home province.
The opportunity that’s fallen at his feet like a well-placed pass comes as no surprise to his former coach with the Windsor FC Nationals.
“It’s a great opportunity and definitely well deserved,” said Demetri Vacratsis, who now coaches in the same Vardar system. “I had the pleasure of coaching him for seven years in Windsor and it’s been great to watch his personal success. He’s earned it.” Facchineri captained two Ontario teams at the U14 and U15 levels and he’s on the radar of Canada’s national program.
He captained a Canadian Selects U15 team and earned a couple of invites to national team camps. “His leadership skills blended with his awareness of the game — he has a high soccer IQ — makes him a pretty good package coming out of the Windsor area,” Vacratsis said.
Early on, Vacratsis saw a young talent “with an incredible desire to get better.
“It wasn’t arrogance, just a drive to become a better player,” he said. That drive continues.
“I’d love to see how good I can possibly be,” Facchineri said. “I’d love to make a career in the game and for that you need to know how good you can be.”
It’s a great opportunity and definitely well deserved ... He’s earned it.