When he ventured to the United States last year with his then fiancé Margaret, Emmanuele Sembroni figured his serious soccer playing days were over.
 
The New York Cosmos defender had forged a 12-year career playing for teams in Italy and Switzerland.
 
"I was absolutely not thinking about playing in general," he said.
 
Then fate intervened. He hooked up with the Cedar Stars, one of the leading teams in the Cosmopolitan Soccer League. His teammates were Danny Szetela and Bledi Bardic, two important Cosmos players.
 
"My wife got a job opportunity," Sembroni said. "She' American. She was living with me in Rome. She got a job over here. I was working, preparing myself after soccer. I didn't know if I was going to play or not, waiting for my documents to arrive."
 
Cedar Stars president Oliver Papraniku gave Sembroni a chance to play with the CSL side and "an opportunity to keep myself in shape," the veteran defender said.
 
"Then I met Danny, Bledi. They were full of players playing offseason and then I got invited for a tournament," he added.
 
That's where Sembroni met head coach Carlos Mendes and Cosmos Senior Vice President Joe Barone.
 
The Rome native signed a contract during preseason and went on to start for the Cosmos at center back in their 2-0 season-opening win over New York Athletic Club in the National Premier Soccer League in Uniondale, N.Y., last Saturday. Sembroni set up Charlie Ledula's insurance goal.
 
"I am very excited about this opportunity with the Cosmos," he said. "The team is very good. We're pushing hard, working hard every day, working on the details. We are getting ready to win all the competitions we have."
 
The 31-year-old Sembroni has been paired with Matt Lewis in the middle of defense. He called his partnership "very, very good."
 
"Me, Matty, Garrett [Halfhill) and Armando [Guarnera], we help each other," he said. "We have a strong connection outside the field. We are really working on communication and understanding each other. We are on the same page and we keep pushing."
 
Sembroni is in the process of obtaining a green card. His wife, Margaret, whom he married last July, is an American citizen.
 
A former member of Italy's Under-18 youth national team, Sembroni performed for eight teams in Serie B or C throughout Italy and Chiasso in the Swiss Premier League. As it turned out, he didn't meet the love of his life until he returned to his native city to play for Lupa Roma in Serie C in 2016.
 
"She was living in London and she got the job in Rome," he said. We were living in the same neighborhood and through common friends, I met her and then I knew she was the one for me."
 
They were married in Florida in July and have moved around a bit since then, calling Brooklyn, Philadelphia and more recently, northern New Jersey home. The Sembroni’s, who have stayed with the Szetelas, are ready to move into their own apartment.
 
"For the season I don't want to move anymore," Sembroni said.
 
Sembroni's main goal now is to claim as much silverware as he can with the Cosmos.
 
"I want to win everything," he said. "When I decided to sign with the Cosmos, I knew I was here to compete to win. I wasn't here to waste my time or move my family again just coming here and playing. We represent our club, we represent people, we represent history, we represent legends, and that's why we are obligated [to win]."
 
Sembroni added through hard work and the proper mentality, the Cosmos can have a successful season.
 
"We've got to help each other all the time in the hard moments," he said. "We've got to be mature and move forward and always think about our goals."
 
The Cosmos meet Kingston Stockade FC in their first away match of the season in upstate New York on Saturday, May 4, at 6 p.m.
 
Their next home match will be against Black Rock FC in the first round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup at Rocco B. Commisso Stadium at Columbia University in New York City at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 8.
 
They return to Mitchel to welcome Boston City FC for a 7 p.m. kickoff on Saturday, May 11.