New Las Vegas Lights FC midfielder Valentin Nöel barely had time to meet his teammates before he was thrust into the starting lineup last week. Signed on Friday, the day before Las Vegas visited Memphis 901 FC in the 2024 USL Championship season-opener, Nöel took just 22 minutes into his debut to open his goalscoring account.
Receiving the ball 40 yards out, Nöel turned, drove toward goal and fired a left-footed shot from the top of the box into the lower right corner. It was a dream start for the 24-year-old Frenchman, who’s hoping to have a major impact in the middle of the park this season.
“It felt amazing,” Nöel said of the goal. “I just wanted to help the team and put this team on the right track in the first game. It’s the beginning of the season, everyone is new here.
“As a whole, I felt a little relief and to be able to help the team at this point and start the game the right way.”
Despite ultimately falling to Memphis 2-1, Nöel helped set the tone for what Vegas hopes is a major turnaround after a tough 2023 campaign. Nöel is reunited with Vegas Head Coach Dennis Sanchez, who managed Nöel as an assistant for Austin FC II in MLS Next Pro last year.
“I really enjoy working with Dennis,” said Nöel. “I see soccer as a chess game. It’s how tactically you can overcome and outperform the opposition, and with Dennis it’s like that.
“I also love him on the personal side,” he continued. “He’s very close to his players, able to joke around when it’s the right time to do so and also be serious and make himself understood when it’s the right time. It’s a good fit, a good balance, between a coach who knows the game and also a human being who knows how to take care of his players.”
Sanchez knows what kind of player he’s getting in Nöel too. Sanchez praised the soccer IQ of the former Pitt Panther standout, as well as his ability to seamlessly navigate a new challenge.
“Val has a lot of football in him,” Sanchez said. “He comes from a good footballing environment, a lot of similarities with what we were doing in Austin that will be taking place here. He’s a guy that I trust and can depend on.”
Sanchez will likely turn to Nöel again this weekend when the Lights host FC Tulsa in their season-opener at Cashman Field (5 p.m. PT; Watch locally on FOX5 or stream nationally on ESPN+ | TICKETS). Nöel noted that the squad is still working on becoming more cohesive and learning about each other, something that will develop over time and will be necessary as Vegas works toward its ultimate goal of qualifying for the playoffs.
“I’m quite pleased with the group and how I’ve been welcomed within the locker room,” said Nöel. “There’s a bunch of good personalities, good guys, good players.
“I want to help the team as much as I can with goals, assists, leadership on the pitch,” he added. “If the team performs, then that means all the individuals performed. If the team reaches its goal, I’ll probably reach mine too.”