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Valour FC Defender Themi Antonoglou Earns Nomination for Defender of the Year Award

October 30, 2024 - Canadian Premier League (CPL)
Valour FC News Release


WINNIPEG, MB - Valour FC defender Themi Antonoglou has been nominated for the Canadian Premier League (CPL) Defender of the Year Award for 2024, the league announced on Wednesday.

Antonoglou, 23, made a significant impact for Valour in his first season in the CPL. An attack-minded defender, the native of Toronto dominated the left side of the field for Valour, making hard work for his opponents because of his pace on the wings and his ability to deliver precise crosses into the box. That delivery helped Antonoglou finish the regular season ranked first among CPL players with seven assists, becoming the first defender to ever lead the league in that category.

It wasn't just Antonoglou's ability to carry the ball out of the back that made his season special. He also showed off his ability to anticipate play by leading the CPL with 60 interceptions and ranking joint-third among all CPL players in tackles won (51), the most by any defender in 2024.

Antonoglou led the Lions this season with eight appearances in the CPL Team of the Week and earned the Gatorade Performance of the Match nod on two occasions during the 2024 season. After scoring his first goal for Valour in Matchweek 16, the defender was also recognized as CPL Player of the Week.

This is Antonoglou's first nomination for the CPL's Defender of the Year award. He is nominated alongside Forge FC's Alexander Achinioti-Jönsson and Cavalry FC's Daan Klomp.

The winner of the 2024 Defender of the Year award is decided through voting by technical leadership from all eight CPL clubs as well as by select media members, representing local and national outlets, who consistently covered the 2024 CPL regular season. Voting for the CPL's Defender of the Year award is based on performances during the 2024 CPL regular season, not including Canadian Championship, Concacaf Champions Cup or 2024 CPL Playoffs action.

The Defender of Year for 2024 will be revealed at the 2024 CPL Awards ceremony on Thursday, Nov. 7 at 7 p.m. CT, which will be broadcast live on OneSoccer and streamed on CBC Gem and cbcsports.ca. The winner will receive a unique piece of Inuit soapstone art, conceived and carved by artist Ruben Komangapik. The Walrus statue was chosen to honor the CPL's best defender because the animal is one of the ocean's toughest creatures, feared even by polar bears and killer whales, like a tenacious defender who is a true guardian of the gates for his squad.

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