Valentin Roberge
FullnameValentin Sébastien Roger Roberge[1]
Birth date9 June 1987 (age 39)
Birth placeMontreuil, France
Height1.85 m[2]
PositionCentre-back
Youthclubs 1ESD Montreuil
Youthclubs 2Les Lilas
Youthclubs 3Paris FC
Years 12006–2007
Clubs 1Guingamp B
Caps 128
Goals 11
Years 22007–2008
Clubs 2Paris SG B
Caps 231
Goals 20
Years 32008–2010
Clubs 3Aris
Caps 325
Goals 30
Years 42010–2013
Clubs 4Marítimo
Caps 477
Goals 42
Years 52013–2016
Clubs 5Sunderland
Caps 510
Goals 50
Years 62014–2015
Clubs 6Reims (loan)
Caps 611
Goals 60
Years 72016–2023
Clubs 7Apollon Limassol
Caps 7168
Goals 74
Years 82023–2026
Clubs 8AEK Larnaca
Caps 882
Goals 80
Nationalyears 12022–2023
Nationalteam 1Cyprus
Nationalcaps 15
Nationalgoals 11
Club-update10:07, 27 May 2026 (UTC)

Valentin Sébastien Roger Roberge (born 9 June 1987) is a professional footballer who plays as a centre-back.

Born in France, he represented Cyprus at international level.

Club career

Early years

Born in Montreuil, Seine-Saint-Denis, Roberge had spells with hometown's ESD Montreuil, Les Lilas and Paris FC before joining Guingamp for his senior debut, but he went on to appear only for the reserve side.

For the 2007–08 season he signed with Paris Saint Germain, but met the exact same fate.[3]

Aris and Marítimo

In the summer of 2008, Roberge signed for Aris Thessaloniki, penning a three-year contract. He made his debut against Panathinaikos but, midway through his second year in the Super League Greece, an economic crisis took hold of the club, and he went five months without being paid before his link was terminated.[4]

Following his release, Roberge moved to Portugal's Marítimo after a successful trial.[5] He started in all of his 25 Primeira Liga appearances in the 2011–12 campaign, helping the Madeirans to finish fifth and qualify for the UEFA Europa League.[6]

Sunderland

On 10 June 2013, Premier League side Sunderland announced the signing of Roberge on a free transfer.[7] He made his debut on 17 August in a 0–1 home defeat against Fulham,[8] and scored his only goal on 24 September in the 2–0 home win over Peterborough in the League Cup, heading in an Adam Johnson cross.[9]

Roberge left the Stadium of Light in June 2016, with 13 competitive matches to his credit.[10]

Apollon Limassol

Roberge joined Apollon Limassol in the 2016 off-season. He won several accolades during his spell, including the Cypriot First Division in 2021–22.[11]

International career

In September 2022, Roberge became a Cypriot citizen.[12] He won his first cap for the national team on the 24th at the age of 35, in a 1–0 victory against Greece in the UEFA Nations League.[13] He scored his first goal three days later, but in a 5–1 loss in Kosovo in the same competition.[14]

Career statistics

[15]

ClubSeasonLeagueNational cupLeague cupContinentalOtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Aris2008–09Super League Greece2001000210
2009–10501060
Total2502000270
Marítimo2010–11Primeira Liga251201000281
2011–122503050330
2012–13271100091372
Total772606091983
Sunderland2013–14Premier League901021121
2014–15100010
2015–1600000000
Total1001021131
Reims (loan)2014–15Ligue 11101010130
Apollon Limassol2016–17Cypriot First Division25070001[a]0330
2017–18341401001[a]0491
2018–1925230130412
2019–2020000020
2020–212701030310
2021–2229020310
2022–2325110811[a]0353
Total1674180341302226
AEK Larnaca2023–24Cypriot First Division3101020340
2024–252504020310
Total560504000650
Career total3466330914723043810
  1. ^ Appearance in Cypriot Super Cup

Honours

Apollon Limassol

AEK Larnaca

References

  1. ^ "List of players under written contract whose registrations have been cancelled by mutual consent between 01/03/2016 and 31/03/2016" (PDF). The Football Association. p. 8. Retrieved 3 February 2019.
  2. ^ "Valentin Roberge" (in French). L'Équipe. Retrieved 17 January 2015.
  3. ^ Denis, Sébastien (3 April 2011). "Info FM, Valentin Roberge: "Au Portugal, beaucoup comparent mon parcours à celui d'Aly Cissokho"" [Info FM, Valentin Roberge: "In Portugal, many compare my career to that of Aly Cissokho"] (in French). Foot Mercato. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  4. ^ Pereira, William (25 October 2012). "Roberge: "Tu sens que le Portugal ne va pas bien"" [Roberge: "You can feel Portugal is not well"] (in French). So Foot. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  5. ^ "Francês Roberge chega à experiência" [Frenchman Roberge arrives on trial] (in Portuguese). Record. 29 June 2010. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  6. ^ Carvalho, David (31 July 2012). "Marítimo quer primeira vitória europeia da época" [Marítimo want first European win of the season] (in Portuguese). TSF. Retrieved 30 September 2022.
  7. ^ O'Rourke, Pete (10 June 2013). "Sunderland have signed Valentin Roberge, Cabral and Modibo Diakite". Sky Sports. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  8. ^ Begley, Emlyn (17 August 2013). "Sunderland 0–1 Fulham". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 September 2013.
  9. ^ "Sunderland 2–0 Peterborough". BBC Sport. 24 September 2013. Retrieved 27 September 2013.
  10. ^ Hunter, James (21 March 2019). "Sunderland's ill-fated class of 2013: Where are Roberto de Fanti's signings now?". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
  11. ^ Macedo, Aurélien (24 September 2022). "La belle histoire du Français Valentin Roberge sélectionné avec Chypre à 35 ans!" [The beautiful story of Frenchman Valentin Roberge called by Cyprus at the age of 35!] (in French). Foot Mercato. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  12. ^ "Διεθνής με την Κύπρο στα 35 του ο Βαλεντίν Ρόμπερζ" [International with Cyprus at the age of 35, Valentin Roberge] (in Greek). BN Sports. 19 September 2022. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  13. ^ Papamakarios, Petros (24 September 2022). "Κύπρος-Ελλάδα 1–0: Ο Τζιωνής "πλήγωσε" την γαλανόλευκη που γνώρισε την πρώτη της ήττα" [Cyprus-Greece 1–0: Tzionis "hurt" blue-and-white team that experienced their first defeat] (in Greek). Sport 24. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
  14. ^ "Κόσοβο – Κύπρος 5–1: Σφαλιάρα προσγείωσης στα μπαράζ παραμονής (vid)" [Kosovo – Cyprus 5–1: Landing playoff berth (vid)] (in Greek). Phile News. 27 September 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  15. ^