Barcelona continue to work hard to improve their side after a disappointing season by signing Chilean goalkeeper Claudio Bravo today from Real Sociedad for an undisclosed fee.
The 31-year-old signed a four-year deal and is having a solid World Cup as the captain of Chile. His country are advancing to the knockout stage. In the group stage, the team has only conceded two goals, both in a 2-0 loss to the Netherlands. After coming up through Chilean club Colo-Colo’s youth academy and playing for their first team from 2002-2006, Bravo came to Spain in 2006 when Real Sociedad signed him to a five-year deal after a fee of reportedly €1.2 million. Since then, the 2009-10 member of the Segunda Division champions has worked his way up to be a captain for club and country and a dependable player who is a natural leader while using his size and agility to be a consistent performer.
With club legend Victor Valdes preferring to explore his options outside his boyhood club and the team not resigning backup Jose Manuel Pinto, Bravo will be battling 22-year-old Marc-Andre ter Stegen, signed from Bundesliga club Borussia Monchengladbach in May, to be the starter for the Blaugrana.
The goalkeeping battle will be very interesting as ter Stegen is viewed as the player of the club’s future and will be given every chance to succeed. Bravo, however, has experience playing in La Liga and understands how teams function in Spain while the youngster still has to learn. New manager Luis Enrique has been operating relentlessly to improve the team and Bravo is a proven veteran who will be a great addition.
