Edoardo Valenti was born in Rome on March 10, 1922. He was born in the Testaccio quarter of Rome, traditionally a Roma supporting area and for some reason was known as Aldo. His father ran a clothes shop in the area.
He was noticed by Lazio manager Dino Canestri in 1934 while playing on a parish pitch in Testaccio. He then grew up in the Lazio youth sector.
In 1940 he played a year with the BNL bankers’ team and then returned to Lazio. In 1941-42 he played 11 games with the reserve team and scored 1 goal.
In 1942-43 he made his first team debut and ended up playing 8 league games and 1 in Coppa Italia. The manager was Alexander Popovich and Lazio finished 9th and winning one derby 3-1, beating Juventus twice and Milan.
In 1943-44 the national leagues were interrupted but football continued at local level. Lazio played in the Roman War League, a tournament between ten teams including Roma. Lazio won the league and Valenti played 18 league games plus two in the final four, under manager Dino Canestri. Lazio won the championship but lost in semi-finals of the less prestigious follow up tournament.
On 23 March 1944 the GAP (Patriotic Action Group) partisans blew up and killed 33 German soldiers in Via Rasella. Following the attack Venturi together with two teammates was stopped by the enemy forces and only freed after he had proved he played football professionally. There followed of course the German reaction with 335 innocent people, including ten civilians, killed at the Ardeatine Fosse.
In 1944-45, Lazio finished 2nd in the Roman War League and Valenti played 11 league games, 4 in City of Rome Cup and 2 in an Interregional tournament. On one of his returns to Testaccio, to play Roma, legend has it that he was insulted so much that his mother reacted by throwing one romanista from the upper stand down to the lower one.
In 1945-46 the national leagues returned but were divided into two groups: north and centre-south. Lazio obviously played in the latter and finished 7th, first under Canestri (1-10), then Salvador Gualtieri (11-16) and finally Tony Cargnelli (17-20). Valenti played 8 league games.
The 1946-47 was his last with Lazio. The Biancocelesti finished 10th in the return of the Serie A format. He played 6 league games, under Cargnelli.
In 1947-48 he played a last season with Perugia in Serie B. The Umbri finished 16th and were relegated. The "Grifoni" (Griffins) started with Umberto De Angelis as manager and ended with Luigi Miconi. Valenti played 11 League games.
He then retired at 26 due to two serious injuries, one to his knee and one to his ankle.
On retirement he opened a bar in the Testaccio area which became a popular meeting point for Lazio fans. He later ran a tobacconist shop in central Via Nazionale.
Valenti was a defender. He had excellent aerial skills and good technique. He was known for being a fair and clean player and nicknamed "Pandoro" (Soft, sweet Christmas cake) for his smoothness. Another nickname was "Er Zagaja" (Roman dialect) due to a slight stutter. It is said even the great Sivio Piola had difficulty in getting the better of him in training.
He played 60 times for Lazio. He died in Rome on July 28, 2009.
Lazio Career
Season | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia | National Serie A-B Centre-South Champ. | Roman War Championship | Other |
1942-43 | 9 | 8 | 1 | |||
1943-44 | 20 | - | - | 18 | 2 | |
1944-45 | 17 | - | - | - | 11 | 6 |
1945-46 | 8 | - | - | 8 | ||
1946-47 | 6 | 6 | - | - | - | - |
Total | 60 | 14 | 1 | 8 | 29 | 8 |
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