Since Zubizarreta left the Camp Nou, Barcelona had a big problem with the goalkeepers. Only Ruud Hesp had some regularity, but he came in the last part of his career. But 4 years ago, a goalie of the youth system made his debut in Primera thanks to the hand of Louis Van Gaal and found regularty with the arrival of Frank Rijkaard.
Victor Valdés was the youngest player in the starting lineup of the team that won the CL in Paris. He was the first Zamora that Barça had in almost 20 years after Zubizarreta. Victor has shown a constant progression, but this year he's showing his best form. Our young goalkeeper assure this position for the next decade. Being a goalie in the Camp Nou is a difficult task. His self-steem and the way he faces the bad moments make him triumph where other goalies failed.
Victor Valdés, a life in blaugrana.
The career of Victor Valdés, who'll be 25 next Sunday, has been precocious. He's the youngest goalie that has consolidated his career in the goal of Barcelona and the youngest guy to enter in La Masia. Valdés always was there before the symbols of the club.
He entered in the youth system being 10 years, 7 months and 15 days old (August 29th, 1992). Until few time ago, noone was even close to this record. Bacary Mendez, who came from Almeria and play in the Infantil team, arrived in 2004 being 10 years, 11 months and 20 days old. He was near, but couldn't beat Victor, who is the youngest in history.
Victor also beats the symbols of the club, like Guillermo Amor (13) or Pep Guardiola (12) or other young players like Jofre Mateu (13), Pepe Reina (13), Marc Martínez (12), Diong Mendy (12), Andrés Iniesta (12) Lluís Sastre (12) or Jorge Troiteiro (12).
Now, near his 25th b-day, Victor has been half of his life linked to Barcelona. A record that few people in Rijkaard's squad can say. You may think he's been 15 years in Barcelona, but this is not 100% true, since he also was 2 years and a half out of the club.
He arrived to La Masia from the Penya Cinco Copas, where he played the 90/91 and the 91/92 seasons. Oriol Tort and Joan Martinez Vilaseca were the ones who discovered Victor when he played for the Penya.
Being so young in La Masia and his introverted character was a problem in these first months. He was 3 years younger than the next resident of La Masia in age. Victor Valdés missed his fathers, who had gone to live to Los Cristianos (Tenerife), and few months later, Carlos Naval let him go on Dec. 1st., when the kid asked for it.
Victor went with his parents and 2 years and a half later, Victor asked his dad for the return. His father talked to Oriol Tort and they agreed the returned of the goalie in August 1995, when he was 13.
At that age, he started a tough "war" with Pepe Reina, who has the same age. Joan Vila, one of the coaches of the youth system says: "It was a big problem to have 2 huge talents in the same generation".
"They were always in the same team and it was very tough to choose a starter and a sub. At the end, we decided to make 1 change every 2 games".
Jordi Castel is a coach of goalies in the youth system and confirms this rivalry with Reina. "Their commitment in the training sessions was total. They were and are players with spirit, mentality and competitive: both always want to play. If Reina made his debut with the first team before, it was because of the circumstances. Reina was in his best moment, but time has made them be in the first line in the world. This competition could have been a problem, but it finally was good for both. When you have someone so good next to you, you can't relax".
"It was a pleassure to work with them. They always wanted to improve. The best of Victor was his hunger of triumph, he always thought that he could make it. To his quality, you must add an ideal personality for Barcelona's goal. He had bad moments, he received strong criticism for it, and he always knew how to hold the pressure, keeping the calm. He creates a shield to protect himself and be the same in the following game. That's misunderstood and people have a false image of him. He grows with the adversity", says Castel, Valdes' "creator" according to the goalie.
As any other kid of La Masia, Valdes wished to live what he's living: to play every week in the Camp Nou, the stadium where he slept during so many years in his life. In La Masia, Valdes lived in the communitary rooms. With the extension of the residence, Valdés went to live to the Camp Nou itself, in the entrance of the Gate 78. Valdes says that "since that moment we had more intimacy. We were only 3 guys in one room". And he started to listen to the silence of the Camp Nou.
Valdés took a brave decision joining Barcelona so young. Now, with time, he thinks positively of this decision: "I gave all childhood and part of my life to Barça and, instead, I received a great academic and personal formation and also the biggest opportunity that any kid can have: to be a Barcelona player. It was worth it". But not everything was happiness: "When I got there I was 10, 3 years younger than the 2nd youngest. Ivan de la Peña and Albert Celades tried to cheer me up, but it was impossible. I said enough and I went back with my parents. I spent 2 years only preparing myself to go back to Barcelona". Since then he lived some bad sport experiences and also bad personal experiences, as the death of his grandfather Ezequiel. He also lived sweet moments, as sweet as the ones "I experienced in Paris after winning the Champions League final. It has been my happiest moment since I entered in the club".
Victor Valdés, legend.
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Victor Valdés was the youngest player in the starting lineup of the team that won the CL in Paris. He was the first Zamora that Barça had in almost 20 years after Zubizarreta. Victor has shown a constant progression, but this year he's showing his best form. Our young goalkeeper assure this position for the next decade. Being a goalie in the Camp Nou is a difficult task. His self-steem and the way he faces the bad moments make him triumph where other goalies failed.
Victor Valdés, a life in blaugrana.
The career of Victor Valdés, who'll be 25 next Sunday, has been precocious. He's the youngest goalie that has consolidated his career in the goal of Barcelona and the youngest guy to enter in La Masia. Valdés always was there before the symbols of the club.
He entered in the youth system being 10 years, 7 months and 15 days old (August 29th, 1992). Until few time ago, noone was even close to this record. Bacary Mendez, who came from Almeria and play in the Infantil team, arrived in 2004 being 10 years, 11 months and 20 days old. He was near, but couldn't beat Victor, who is the youngest in history.
Victor also beats the symbols of the club, like Guillermo Amor (13) or Pep Guardiola (12) or other young players like Jofre Mateu (13), Pepe Reina (13), Marc Martínez (12), Diong Mendy (12), Andrés Iniesta (12) Lluís Sastre (12) or Jorge Troiteiro (12).
Now, near his 25th b-day, Victor has been half of his life linked to Barcelona. A record that few people in Rijkaard's squad can say. You may think he's been 15 years in Barcelona, but this is not 100% true, since he also was 2 years and a half out of the club.
He arrived to La Masia from the Penya Cinco Copas, where he played the 90/91 and the 91/92 seasons. Oriol Tort and Joan Martinez Vilaseca were the ones who discovered Victor when he played for the Penya.
Being so young in La Masia and his introverted character was a problem in these first months. He was 3 years younger than the next resident of La Masia in age. Victor Valdés missed his fathers, who had gone to live to Los Cristianos (Tenerife), and few months later, Carlos Naval let him go on Dec. 1st., when the kid asked for it.
Victor went with his parents and 2 years and a half later, Victor asked his dad for the return. His father talked to Oriol Tort and they agreed the returned of the goalie in August 1995, when he was 13.
At that age, he started a tough "war" with Pepe Reina, who has the same age. Joan Vila, one of the coaches of the youth system says: "It was a big problem to have 2 huge talents in the same generation".
"They were always in the same team and it was very tough to choose a starter and a sub. At the end, we decided to make 1 change every 2 games".
Jordi Castel is a coach of goalies in the youth system and confirms this rivalry with Reina. "Their commitment in the training sessions was total. They were and are players with spirit, mentality and competitive: both always want to play. If Reina made his debut with the first team before, it was because of the circumstances. Reina was in his best moment, but time has made them be in the first line in the world. This competition could have been a problem, but it finally was good for both. When you have someone so good next to you, you can't relax".
"It was a pleassure to work with them. They always wanted to improve. The best of Victor was his hunger of triumph, he always thought that he could make it. To his quality, you must add an ideal personality for Barcelona's goal. He had bad moments, he received strong criticism for it, and he always knew how to hold the pressure, keeping the calm. He creates a shield to protect himself and be the same in the following game. That's misunderstood and people have a false image of him. He grows with the adversity", says Castel, Valdes' "creator" according to the goalie.
As any other kid of La Masia, Valdes wished to live what he's living: to play every week in the Camp Nou, the stadium where he slept during so many years in his life. In La Masia, Valdes lived in the communitary rooms. With the extension of the residence, Valdés went to live to the Camp Nou itself, in the entrance of the Gate 78. Valdes says that "since that moment we had more intimacy. We were only 3 guys in one room". And he started to listen to the silence of the Camp Nou.
Valdés took a brave decision joining Barcelona so young. Now, with time, he thinks positively of this decision: "I gave all childhood and part of my life to Barça and, instead, I received a great academic and personal formation and also the biggest opportunity that any kid can have: to be a Barcelona player. It was worth it". But not everything was happiness: "When I got there I was 10, 3 years younger than the 2nd youngest. Ivan de la Peña and Albert Celades tried to cheer me up, but it was impossible. I said enough and I went back with my parents. I spent 2 years only preparing myself to go back to Barcelona". Since then he lived some bad sport experiences and also bad personal experiences, as the death of his grandfather Ezequiel. He also lived sweet moments, as sweet as the ones "I experienced in Paris after winning the Champions League final. It has been my happiest moment since I entered in the club".
Victor Valdés, legend.
http://www.sport.es/default.asp?idpublicacio_PK=44&idioma=CAS&idnoticia_PK=370489&idseccio_PK=803
