Víctor Valdés

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Personal information
Víctor Valdés
Image:Victorvaldes.jpg
Full name	Víctor Valdés Arribas
Date of birth	January 14, 1982
Place of birth	L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Catalonia, Spain
Height	183 cm
Position	Goalkeeper
Club information
Current club	FC Barcelona
Number	1
Professional clubs*
Years	Club	Apps (goals)
2000-	FC Barcelona	117 (0)
National team**
2006-present	Spain	0 (0)
* Professional club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 19 Jul 2006. ** National team caps and goals correct as of 19 Jul 2006.

Víctor Valdés Arribas (born January 14, 1982 in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Catalonia, Spain), nicknamed Victor, is a Spanish football goalkeeper, who currently plays for FC Barcelona of the Spanish La Liga.

1 Club History
2 Skills and Playing Style
3 General
4 External links

[edit] Club History

He started his career with Barça's youth teams when he joined from Peña Cinco Copas on the 1st of July 1992. But in September of the same year he moved away with this family to Tenerife and had to leave the club, rejoining only three years later. After returning he made quick progress through the youth system and was made part of the senior squad in the 2002/03 season. The early part of the season saw him play second fiddle to the then Argentine international Roberto Bonano. The arrival of Radomir Antić as the new coach saw regular first team opportunities for him.

In the 2003-04 season, he emerged as first-choice goalkeeper, and in the 2004-05 season, he played in almost all of Barcelona's matches helping Barcelona to their first league title in six years. He also won the Zamora Trophy for the best goalkeeper in Spain.

The 2005-06 season saw some exceptional performances from him as he helped Barça to the double. He played a big part in Barca's UEFA Champions League 2005-06 title and in the final against Arsenal he denied Thierry Henry twice from point-blank range. His efforts saw him singled out for praise from Coach Frank Rijkaard. The "Zamora" title however eluded him as Víctor came second after Santiago Cañizares.

In 2006 FC Barcelona made a statement saying that they were happy with Valdes and were not interested in signing Petr Čech or Gianluigi Buffon. It was later discovered that the club were interested in the players but they could not afford the huge fee which Juventus and Chelsea would sell the Goalkeepers for. The reason for this was because Barca had spent every penny on Guðjohnsen, Thuram and Zambrotta. Valdes stayed with Barca saying that he is in a great team and he won't get an opportunity to be in a club like Barca again.

[edit] Skills and Playing Style

Valdes is an extremely agile keeper who despite his comparative youth likes to take control of his defence. He is an excellent shot stopper with fantastic reflexes and has great ability in 1v1 situations. A keeper in the modern mold, he also has the ability to make good defensive challenges outside the penalty area.

[edit] General

Valdés is now considered among the top goalkeepers in La Liga and looks like a worthy successor to the great Zubizarreta. He is an admirer of goalkeepers Santiago Cañizares and Oliver Kahn.

[edit] External links

FC Barcelona - Current Squad
1 Valdés \| 2 Belletti \| 3 Motta \| 4 Márquez \| 5 Puyol \| 6 Xavi \| 7 Guðjohnsen \| 8 Giuly \| 9 Eto'o \| 10 Ronaldinho \| 11 Zambrotta \| 12 Gio \| 15 Edmílson \| 16 Sylvinho \| 18 Ezquerro \| 19 Messi \| 20 Deco \| 21 Thuram \| 22 Saviola \| 23 Oleguer \| 24 Iniesta \| 25 Jorquera \| 28 Ruben \| 29 Valiente \| 32 Crosas \| 33 Jeffrén \| Coach: Rijkaard