FCBARCELONA.CAT

28.06.2007 19:05

Lozano and Hvidt ready for action

Sònia de Alba

Demeotrio Lozano and Kasper Hvidt are the latest signings of the summer for Barça Cifec ahead of the 2007-08 campaign.

The duo were snapped up by the handball team to bolster the ranks and both are very exicted about their arrival and the chance to work under coach Manolo Cadenas, who they played for at Ademar. "The project is serious and interesting," said Hvidt. "The spirit and the ideas here captivated me. If you can win by 15 goals, then you will not win by 12. It is a similar philosophy to mine and I have been looking for a team with these characteristics."

Lozano returns

Lozano, 31, was part of the Dream Team that won the three European cups with the Blaugrana before leaving to join THW Kiel in Germany. He then moved to Portland before coming back to Barça. "I will wear the same number again and the same locker," he said. "To play at the highest level is important for me, but to play for Barça is another because of everything that the club means. I am proud that they have approached me and have faith in me. For al that though, I have to be at my best."

The right-sided player has penned a four-year deal with the option for one more on top of that.

A dream come true

For Hvidt, 31, the move is the realisation of a dream. "It is something that I thought about since coming to Spain in 1997," he said. "The competition is fierce. With the Champions games there are a lot matches and we have to have to all give everything." The Danish goalkeeper will be vying for a place in the team with David Barrufet and Venio Losert. "There will not be any problems," he continued. "We all want to help Barça win things. During a season every team needs more than one keeper and everyone here is ready."

Hvidt has signed a three-year contract with Barça.

Commitment

Barça have not included buy-out clauses in the contracts of any of the five new arrivals so far this summer. Garabaya, Gull, Nodesbo, Hvidt and Lozano have all agreed deals and Joan Laporta believes that their commitment will keep them at the club. The handball technical secretary, Enric Masip, said: "This is a great news for everyone. We want people who commit themselves and are here because they wanted to come. We cannot guarantee we will win things but with patience and humility the results will come. The transition that is now taking place so that we do not relax. Things are going well and now was the time to change."