Joel Valencia

César Joel Valencia Castillo (born 16 November 1994) is an Ecuadorian professional footballer who plays as a winger for Polish club Zagłębie Sosnowiec.

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Valencia and the second or maternal family name is Castillo.
Joel Valencia
Valencia while with Brentford in July 2021.
Personal information
Full name César Joel Valencia Castillo[1]
Date of birth (1994-11-16) 16 November 1994
Place of birth Quinindé, Ecuador
Height 1.64 m (5 ft 5 in)[2]
Position(s) Winger
Team information
Current team
 Zagłębie Sosnowiec
Number 17
Youth career
2005–2013 Zaragoza
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2011–2014 Zaragoza B 34 (0)
2011 Zaragoza 1 (0)
2014 → Málaga B (loan) 14 (1)
2014–2015 Logroñés 50 (1)
2016–2017 Koper 26 (1)
2017–2019 Piast Gliwice 59 (9)
2019–2023 Brentford 19 (1)
2020–2021 → Legia Warsaw (loan) 8 (0)
2022 → Alcorcón (loan) 18 (0)
2022–2023 → De Graafschap (loan) 18 (0)
2023– Zagłębie Sosnowiec 7 (1)
International career
2011 Spain U17 1 (0)
2011 Ecuador U17 3 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22:22, 4 September 2023 (UTC)

Valencia is a product of the Real Zaragoza academy and later played in Slovenia and Poland, rising to prominence in the latter country with Piast Gliwice. Following four years in England with Brentford, during which he predominantly played away on loan, he returned to Poland to join Zagłębie Sosnowiec in 2023. Valencia was capped by Spain and Ecuador at U17 level.

Club career

Spain

A winger, Valencia joined the Real Zaragoza academy in 2005, at age 11.[3] By 2011, he had progressed into the club's reserve team and was called into the first team squad on three occasions during the 2011–12 season.[4] Valencia made his only senior appearance for the club as a substitute for Pablo Barrera late in a 6–0 La Liga defeat to Real Madrid on 28 August 2011.[5] He spent much of the following three years in the reserve team and on loan at Málaga B,[6][7] before departing La Romareda to join Segunda División B club Logroñés in August 2014.[8][9] He remained with Logroñés until January 2016 and made 54 appearances for the club, scoring one goal.[4][10]

Slovenia and Poland

On 29 January 2016, Valencia moved to Slovenia to join PrvaLiga club Koper.[10] He made 28 appearances and scored two goals during 18 months at the Bonifika Stadium,[4] before departing to join Polish Ekstraklasa club Piast Gliwice in August 2017, one a one-year contract, with a three-year option.[11] Valencia was a part of the club's 2018–19 Ekstraklasa-winning team and his exploits were recognised with the Ekstraklasa and Polish Union of Footballers Player of the Year awards and a place in the Polish Union of Footballers Team of the Year.[6][12][13] By the time of his departure in late July 2019,[6] he had made 65 appearances and scored 9 goals for the club.[4]

Brentford

On 31 July 2019, Valencia moved to England to join Championship club Brentford on a four-year contract for an undisclosed fee,[6] reported to be £1.8 million.[14] Despite making 23 appearances and scoring one goal,[15] he struggled to adapt to the pace of English football during the 2019–20 season.[16][17] Valencia's 24th and final Brentford appearance came as a late substitute in the opening match of the 2020–21 season.[18]

Valencia played much of the remaining three years of his contract away on loan and Brentford's promotion to the Premier League at the end of the 2020–21 season pushed him further down the pecking order.[19][20] He played in Poland, Spain and the Netherlands for Ekstraklasa club Legia Warsaw, Segunda División club AD Alcorcón and Eerste Divisie club De Graafschap respectively.[21] He suffered a plethora of injury problems and made a combined 51 appearances for the three clubs.[4][22][23][24][25]

Return to Poland

On 14 July 2023, Valencia returned to Poland to sign a two-year contract with I liga club Zagłębie Sosnowiec on a free transfer.[26]

International career

Valencia was capped by Spain and Ecuador at U17 level.[6][27] He was a part of Ecuador's 2011 FIFA U17 World Cup squad and made three appearances at the tournament.[4]

Personal life

Valencia was born in Quinindé, Esmeraldas, Ecuador and moved to Spain in 2002, at age 8.[3] He has a Spanish passport.[6] Valencia's partner, actress Paulina Chapko, gave birth to their child in July 2022.[28]

Career statistics
As of match played 3 September 2023
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[lower-alpha 1] League cup[lower-alpha 2] Europe Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Zaragoza 2011–12[5] La Liga 1 0 0 0 — — — 1 0
Zaragoza B 2011–12[4] Segunda División B Group 3 19 0 — — — — 19 0
2012–13[4] Segunda División B Group 2 14 0 — — — — 14 0
2013–14[29] Tercera División Group 17 1 0 — — — — 1 0
Total 34 0 — — — — 34 0
Málaga B (loan) 2013–14[29] Tercera División Group 9 14 1 — — — 4[lower-alpha 3] 0 18 1
Logroñés 2014–15[4] Segunda División B Group 1 33 1 0 0 — — 2[lower-alpha 4] 0 35 1
2015–16[4] Segunda División B Group 1 17 0 2 0 — — — 19 0
Total 50 1 2 0 — — 2 0 54 1
Koper 2015–16[4] Slovenian PrvaLiga 13 1 0 0 — — — 13 1
2016–17[4] Slovenian PrvaLiga 13 0 2 1 — — — 15 1
Total 26 1 2 1 — — — 28 2
Piast Gliwice 2017–18[4] Ekstraklasa 25 3 1 0 — — — 26 3
2018–19[4] Ekstraklasa 33 6 1 0 — — — 34 6
2019–20[4] Ekstraklasa 1 0 — — 3[lower-alpha 5] 0 1[lower-alpha 6] 0 5 0
Total 59 9 2 0 — 3 0 1 0 65 9
Brentford 2019–20[15] Championship 19 1 2 0 1 0 — 1[lower-alpha 7] 0 23 1
2020–21[18] Championship 0 0 0 0 1 0 — — 1 0
Total 19 1 2 0 2 0 — 1 0 24 1
Legia Warsaw (loan) 2020–21[4] Ekstraklasa 8 0 1 0 — 2[lower-alpha 8] 0 1[lower-alpha 6] 0 12 0
AD Alcorcón (loan) 2021–22[30] Segunda División 18 0 — — — — 18 0
De Graafschap (loan) 2022–23[4] Eerste Divisie 18 0 3 0 — — — 21 0
Zagłębie Sosnowiec 2023–24[4] I liga 7 1 0 0 — — — 7 1
Career totals 254 14 12 1 2 0 5 0 9 0 282 15
  1. Includes Copa del Rey, Slovenian Cup, Polish Cup, FA Cup, KNVB Cup
  2. Includes EFL Cup
  3. Appearances in Tercera División play-offs
  4. Appearances in Segunda División B promotion play-offs
  5. 2 appearances in Champions League, 1 appearance in Europa League
  6. Appearance in Polish Super Cup
  7. Appearances in Championship play-offs
  8. Appearances in Europa League

Honours

Piast Gliwice

Individual

  • Ekstraklasa Player of the Year: 2018–19[12]
  • Ekstraklasa Midfielder of the Year: 2018–19[12]
  • Polish Union of Footballers Player of the Year: 2018–19[13]
  • Polish Union of Footballers Team of the Year: 2018–19[13]

References
  1. "2021/22 Premier League squads confirmed". www.premierleague.com. Retrieved 11 August 2022.
  2. "Joel Valencia". Brentford F.C. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
  3. "Joel Valencia: La nueva 'perla' tricolor : Deportes". La Hora Noticias de Ecuador, sus provincias y el mundo. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 19 May 2011.
  4. Joel Valencia at Soccerway. Retrieved 31 July 2019.
  5. "Games played by Joel Valencia in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 31 July 2019.
  6. "Brentford sign Joel Valencia". www.brentfordfc.com. 31 July 2019. Retrieved 31 July 2019.
  7. "El Zaragoza cede al Málaga a Joel Valencia por la deuda que mantiene por Apoño". ElDesmarque Málaga. 14 January 2014. Retrieved 31 July 2019.
  8. "Acuerdo para la rescisión del contrato de Joel Valencia". Real Zaragoza Web Oficial. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
  9. "Joel Valencia Castillo, nuevo jugador de la UD. Logroñés". Archived from the original on 28 August 2014. Retrieved 27 August 2014.
  10. "Joel Valencia – Brentford". www.footballdatabase.eu. Retrieved 31 July 2019.
  11. "Joel Valencia piłkarzem Piasta" (in Polish). 90minut. 21 July 2017. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
  12. "Rozdano nagrody w Ekstraklasie za sezon 2018/19". www.90minut.pl. Retrieved 31 July 2019.
  13. "Joel Valencia receives Polish Player of the Year awards". www.brentfordfc.com. Retrieved 3 September 2019.
  14. "Valencia completes £1.8m move to Brentford". West London Sport. 31 July 2019. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
  15. "Games played by Joel Valencia in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 31 July 2019.
  16. Thomas, Lyall (17 November 2019). "Brentford winger Valencia could be out for three months". West London Sport. Retrieved 17 November 2019.
  17. Thomas, Lyall (5 July 2020). "Thomas Frank insists Joel Valencia has a future at Brentford". West London Sport. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  18. "Games played by Joel Valencia in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 6 September 2020.
  19. "Fosu and Valencia to leave Brentford as contracts expire". www.brentfordfc.com. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
  20. "Bees beat Swans to reach Premier League". BBC Sport. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  21. "Valencia leaves on loan". www.brentfordfc.com. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
  22. Gawroński, Piotr (29 April 2021). "Joel Valencia wraca do Anglii". legia.net (in Polish). Retrieved 1 May 2021.
  23. "Joel Valencia: "Quiero intentarlo en Brentford y en la Premier League"". ESPNdeportes.com (in Spanish). 12 June 2021. Retrieved 24 June 2021.
  24. "De Graafschap moet Joel Valencia aantal weken missen". de Gelderlander (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 January 2023.
  25. "Joel Valencia staat waarschijnlijk tot het einde van het seizoen buitenspel". De Graafschap (in Dutch). 23 March 2023. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  26. "Joel Valencia dołącza do Zagłębia Sosnowiec. Witamy w naszym klubie!" (in Polish). Zagłębie Sosnowiec. 14 July 2023.
  27. "Spanish Under 17". Soccer-Spain. Archived from the original on 31 August 2013. Retrieved 2 January 2020.
  28. "Gwiazda "Na wspólnej" urodziła! Siostra znanej aktorki i jej partner piłkarz zostali rodzicami". Jastrząb Post (in Polish). 15 July 2022. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
  29. "Joel Valencia – Ex-U.D. Logroñés :: Fútbol de Galicia ::". www.lapreferente.com. Retrieved 31 July 2019.
  30. "Games played by Joel Valencia in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
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