Victor Valdes Arribas

Víctor Valdés joined Barca as a youngster on 1st July 1992, from Peña Cinco Copas.

In September of the same year he moved with his family to Tenerife and didn't rejoin the club until three years later.

After quickly proving his worth with the youth teams and Barca B, the club coaches decided that the 2002-2003 season was to be Valdés time to form part of the first team squad. At first, he alternated appearances with Roberto Bonano but finished the season as regular first choice under Radomir Antic.

He consolidated his place as in the starting line-up in the 2003-04 season. He played most of Barca's matches that season and put in some excellent performances, helping the team to finish as runners-up.

In the 2005-06 season Valdés was one of the key players in Barça’s double of the League and the Champions League. Especially memorable are the crucial saves he made in the final in Paris as Barça won its second ever Champions League.

In the 2006-07 season Valdés remained a fixture in the Barça goal and played in all 38 League games. In the 2007-08 campaign he only stood down in the last three games to give José Manuel Pinto a chance to make his first team debut. All this time Valdés has been improving and is now one of the players who has played most games between the sticks for the club.

In the 2008/09 season, his regularity won him his second Zamora trophy. He played every league game bar the last three when the title was already decided. He performed brilliantly in the Rome final and became the first Barça keeper to be crowned champion of Europe twice. His excellent performances have earned him a contract extension that will keep him at the club until 2014.

In the 2009/10 and 2010/11 seasons he won his third and fourth Zamora trophies. The fourth came with his best record ever and the second best in league history (0.50 goals conceded per game). The legendary Antoni Ramallets is the only Barça keeper to have won the trophy more times (5). Valdés is the only Barça goalkeeper to have played in three Champions League finals, and he won them all.

His consistently strong performances at club level earned him one of the three goalkeepers’ jerseys in the Spanish squad for the 2010 World Cup, although he didn’t play a single minute of Spain’s victorious campaign.

PROFILE

One of the things that needed to be worked on after the first season, namely coming off his line, started to pick up in his second campaign with the first team. He is now one of the best goalkeepers in the world.

HONOURS

FC Barcelona
2010/11 Champions League
2010/11 Liga
2010/11 Spanish Super Cup
2009/10 Liga
2009/10 World Club Cup
2009/10 European Super Cup  
2009/10 Spanish Super Cup
2008/09 Champions League 
2008/09 Liga
2008/09 Copa del Rey
2006/07 Spanish Super Cup
2005/06 Champions League
2005/06 Liga
2005/06 Spanish Super Cup
2004/05 Liga

Spanish National Team
2010 World Cup 

Individual Awards
2010/11 Spanish League Zamora
2009/10 Spanish League Zamora
2008/09 Spanish League Zamora
2004/05 Spanish League Zamora

CAREER

2010-11 FC Barcelona
2009-10 FC Barcelona
2008-09 FC Barcelona
2007-08 FC Barcelona
2006-07 FC Barcelona
2005-06 FC Barcelona
2004-05 FC Barcelona
2003-04 FC Barcelona
2002-03 FC Barcelona