EDINBURG, Texas (Saturday, June 19, 2021) – Rio Grande Valley FC announced today the acquisition of defender Roberto Abuquerque. The signing is pending league and federation approval.
“Roberto is a strong and very composed American defender coming after winning the promotion from Third to Segunda B Division with Real Avilés in Spain,” said Wilmer Cabrera, RGV FC Head Coach and Sporting Director. “With his international experience and playing in a tougher environment, he is ready to compete for a spot and conquer the heart of the Toros’ fans.”
Albuquerque (6-foot-1, 195 lbs) joins the Toros after spending four years playing in Spain. Most recently, the Chicago native dressed for Real Avilés Club de Fútbol, part of the Tercera División. With Real Avilés, Albuquerque made three appearances and tallied his first career goal in a 2-0 win over Caudal Deportivo on May 16, 2021.
In 2019 the 27-year-old made two appearances in the finals of Copa Del Rey while being with CD Lealtad, part of the Second Division in Spain.
Prior to kicking off his professional career in Spain, the defender competed played four seasons collegiately at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. In 2012 Albuquerque played in 11 games as a true freshman, making three starts as a midfielder. As a sophomore, he started and played in all 18 contests and helped the Roos record two shutouts. In October of 2013, Albuquerque scored his first collegiate goal, which served as the equalizer in a contest against Air Force. in 2014, he scored his second goal and made 19 appearances overall.
TRANSACTION: Rio Grande Valley FC signed defender Roberto Albuquerque.
PLAYER PROFILE
FULL NAME: Roberto Albuquerque
POSITION: Defender
DATE OF BIRTH: November 4, 1993
HEIGHT: 6’1”
WEIGHT: 185
BIRTHPLACE: Chicago, Illinois
HOMETOWN: Chicago, Illinois
PREVIOUS CLUB: Real Avilés CF
FIFA NATIONALITY: United States
ABOUT RIO GRANDE VALLEY FC
The Rio Grande Valley FC Toros (RGV FC) enter their sixth season in the United Soccer League (USL) Championship in 2021. The club plays at H-E-B Park, a state-of-the-art soccer specific stadium that holds 9,700 people, the club trains in H-E-B Park’s world class training facility adjacent to the stadium. RGV FC is the only professional soccer team located within the Rio Grande Valley. In 2016, RGV FC became USL’s first team to develop a hybrid affiliation model with a Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise. This partnership, with Houston Dynamo FC, began in 2016. The relationship has now evolved into a more traditional USL/MLS affiliation where RGV FC manages all aspects of the club and the Dynamo are able to loan players to the Toros for development purposes. For more information, please visit www.www.rgvfc.com/rgvfc.
# PARA EL VALLE #
