FCBARCELONA.CAT

07.07.2009 12:15

Custodian of Barça’s goal

Anna Segura

Víctor Valdés’s contract renewal to 2014 is another step forward in the Barça keeper’s career in which he has become the club’s undisputed choice between the sticks.

Since Andoni Zubizarreta left FC Barcelona, none of his successors had staked such a claim to goalkeeper’s jersey. Or at least not until 1 September 2002 when the 20-year-old Víctor Valdés came out of the reserves to take his place between the posts for the first time.

Big leap with Rijkaard

Although he made his debut in 2002/03 under Louis Van Gaal, Víctor Valdés found he alternated between the first team and the reserves. But in Rijkaard’s first year, Valdés made the big leap and played virtually the whole season ahead of the recently signed Turk Rüstu.

Upward trend

Since then Valdés has become a fixture in the always difficult Barça goal. In that time he has won three League titles (2004/05, 2005/06 and 2008/09), two Champions Leagues (2005/06 and 2008/09), a King’s Cup (2008/09) and two Spanish Super Cups (2005/06 and 2006/07).

Crucial

The final in Paris and the away leg of the Champions League semi-final against Chelsea show how crucial a player Valdés is. He kept out Henry, then playing for Arsenal, in 2006 and did the same to Chelsea’s Didier Drogba this season.

225 League games

By the end of the 2008/09 season Víctor Valdés had racked up 225 League games for Barça. That puts him fourth in the club’s all-time ranking for keepers behind Zubizarreta (301), Ramallets (288) and Sadurní (247).

Plus this season Valdés, a product of the club’s La Masia academy, became one of the four club captains alongside Puyol, Xavi and Iniesta.