Theodor Alexander Corbeanu (born May 17, 2002) is a Canadian professional

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

player who plays as a forward or a winger for

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...

side

Toronto FC Toronto Football Club is a Canadian professional Association football, soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matc ...

, on loan from

Segunda División The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Segunda División, commonly known as Segunda División or La Liga 2, and officially known as LaLiga HyperMotion for sponsorship reasons, is the men's second professional association football division of the Spa ...

club

Granada Granada ( ; ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada (Spain), Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence ...

, and the Canada national team.

Early life

Born in

Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Hamilton has a 2021 Canadian census, population of 569,353 (2021), and its Census Metropolitan Area, census metropolitan area, which encompasses ...

, Corbeanu began playing house league soccer at the age of five with local club Quinndale Youth Soccer as a goalkeeper, but soon switched to a forward role. At youth level, he later played for local clubs Mount Hamilton SC, Hamilton Sparta SC, Saltfleet SC and Givova Academy. In late 2016, after a successful trial, Corbeanu joined the academy of

Club career

Toronto FC

In 2018, he played for Toronto FC III in

League1 Ontario League1 Ontario (L1ON) is a semi-professional men's soccer league in Ontario, Canada. The league is sanctioned by the Canadian Soccer Association and the Ontario Soccer Association. League1 Ontario consists of three tiers – League1 Premier ...

. He scored two goals in a 6–1 victory over Toronto Skillz FC on May 21, 2018.

Wolverhampton Wanderers

Having left Toronto FC in August 2018, Corbeanu was unsuccessful in a trial for English club Leicester City, but was later offered a scholarship with the academy of

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league s ...

, in which he represented the club's U16 and U18 sides. In the summer of 2019, he joined the first team on their pre-season trip in China, before joining the club's U23 development squad in 2020. After playing nine games for the Wolves U23 team, in which he scored four goals, Corbeanu signed a professional contract with the first team in October 2020. He subsequently became a regular fixture on the Wolves bench, eventually making his

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

debut appearance for the club on May 16, 2021, coming on as a second-half substitute in their game away to Tottenham Hotspur, which ended with a 2–0 defeat.

Loan to Sheffield Wednesday

On August 2, 2021, Corbeanu joined

EFL League One The English Football League One, known as Sky Bet League One for sponsorship reasons, or simply League One, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League One is the second-highest division of the English Football League an ...

club

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an off ...

on a season-long loan. He made his ''Owls'' debut in a single-goal defeat at

Morecambe Morecambe ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the City of Lancaster district of Lancashire, England, on Morecambe Bay, part of the Irish Sea. In 2011 the parish had a population of 34,768. Name The first use of the name was by John Whit ...

on August 28. On November 2, Corbeanu scored his first senior professional goal, with the opener in a 3–0 victory over

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

Loan to Milton Keynes Dons

On January 6, 2022, Corbeanu was recalled from his loan early by Wolves and sent back out on loan to another League One club, Milton Keynes Dons, for the remainder of the 2021–22 season. He made his debut on January 11 in a 1–0 home win over

rivals A rivalry is the state of two people or Social group, groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each ...

AFC Wimbledon, and four days later scored his first goal for the club in a 2–1 away win over

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

. Corbeanu went on to make 17 appearances for MK Dons as the club secured a third-placed play-off finish.

Loan to Blackpool

On July 28, 2022, Corbeanu joined

EFL Championship The English Football League Championship, known simply as the Championship and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Bet Championship, is a professional association football league in England and Wales. Contested by 24 clubs, it is the highest divi ...

club

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...

on loan for the duration of the 2022–23 season. He made his debut for the club the next day as second-half substitute in a single-goal victory over

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...

at Bloomfield Road. On August 20, Corbeanu scored his first goal for Blackpool, netting their first in an eventual 3–3 draw against

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2021 population of 78,266. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River B ...

. On January 3, 2023, he was re-called by Wolves after suffering an ankle injury, ending his time at the club.

Loan to Arminia Bielefeld

On January 20, 2023, 2. Bundesliga side

Arminia Bielefeld DSC Arminia Bielefeld (; full name: ; commonly known as Arminia Bielefeld (), also known as ''Die Arminen'' or ''Die Blauen'' ), or just Arminia (), is a German sports club from Bielefeld, North Rhine-Westphalia. Arminia is most well known as ...

announced they had signed Corbeanu on a loan from Wolves for the remainder of the season.

Loan to Grasshopper Club Zürich

On 4 July 2023, he signed with

Grasshopper Club Zürich Grasshopper Club Zurich (GCZ), commonly referred to as Grasshopper Club or simply just GC, is a professional sports club, multisports club based in Zürich, Zurich, Switzerland. They are nicknamed the ''Grasshoppers'' or sometimes just ''Hopper ...

in the

Swiss Super League The Super League (also known as the Credit Suisse Super League for sponsorship reasons) is a professional association football league in Switzerland and the highest level of the Swiss football league system. It has been played in its current fo ...

for a season long loan spell. He moves to the

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

record champion with fellow Wolves loanee Nigel Lonwijk. He was selected in the starting lineup of the first game of the season on 22 July 2023 and supplied the assist for Grasshopper's only goal in a 1–3 home defeat to Servette FC. His loan was cut short, following a change of ownership at Grasshoppers, and he returned to Wolves on 19 January 2024.

Granada CF

On February 1, 2024 Corbeanu signed with

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known as the Primera División or La Liga, and officially known as LaLiga EA Sports for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Spain and the highest ...

side

. He made his debut two days later against Las Palmas, entering the match as a substitute for Facundo Pellistri. He scored his first goal for his new club on March 3, netting a late consolation strike against Villareal in a 5–1 defeat.

Return to Toronto FC (loan)

On January 14, 2025, Corbeanu returned to Toronto FC on a one-year loan deal.

International career

After not being selected for the Canadian U15 team, Corbeanu contacted the Romanian federation, who were aware of his progress. He began playing for Romania at U16 and U17 level, scoring twice in his first match with the U16 side against the Republic of Ireland. After two years with the Romanian youth teams, he left in 2019, wanting to remain eligible for

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

at senior level. He was called up to the Canadian senior team for the first time in December 2020, for a January training camp, but later withdrew due to club commitments with Wolves. He officially joined the senior squad for the first time in March 2021, when he was called up ahead of Canada's 2022 World Cup qualification matches against

Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...

and the

Cayman Islands The Cayman Islands () is a self-governing British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory, and the largest by population. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which are located so ...

. He made his debut as a 77th-minute substitute against

on March 25, 2021, scoring four minutes into his debut with Canada's fifth goal in a 5–1 victory. In June 2021, Corbeanu was named in Canada's preliminary squad for the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup. On July 1, 2021, he was named in the final squad that would participate at the tournament. In December 2021, Corbeanu was named the 2021 Canada Soccer Youth Player of the Year. He was included in the preliminary squad for the

2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup The 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the 17th edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup, the biennial international men's association football, soccer championship of the North, Central American and Caribbean region organized by CONCACAF. Canada and the United ...

, but did not make the final squad.

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list Canada's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Corbeanu goal.''

Honours

Individual * Canada Soccer Youth Player of the Year: 2021

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Corbeanu, Theo 2002 births Living people Canadian people of Romanian descent Canadian men's soccer players Soccer players from Hamilton, Ontario Romanian men's footballers Men's association football forwards Canada men's international soccer players Romania men's youth international footballers 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup players English Football League players 2. Bundesliga players Swiss Super League players Toronto FC Academy players Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. players Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players Milton Keynes Dons F.C. players Blackpool F.C. players Arminia Bielefeld players Grasshopper Club Zurich players Granada CF footballers Toronto FC players Canadian expatriate men's soccer players Romanian expatriate men's footballers Canadian expatriate sportspeople in England Romanian expatriate sportspeople in England Expatriate men's footballers in England Canadian expatriate sportspeople in Germany Romanian expatriate sportspeople in Germany Expatriate men's footballers in Germany Canadian expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland Romanian expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland Expatriate men's footballers in Switzerland Canadian expatriate sportspeople in Spain Romanian expatriate sportspeople in Spain Expatriate men's footballers in Spain Premier League players 21st-century Canadian sportsmen 21st-century Romanian sportsmen Major League Soccer players