Manchester - Arab Today
Manchester City have confirmed the signing of goalkeeper Claudio Bravo from Barcelona on a four-year contract.
The 33 year-old Chilean is set to be manager Pep Guardiola's first choice between the posts ahead of Argentine Willy Caballero and Joe Hart who was a regular starter for the citizens over the past six seasons. "I'm very proud to be joining Manchester City. I know the Club is building something very special and I hope I can be part of many successes in the coming years," Bravo said upon signing for the English club. "It is not easy to leave a club like Barcelona where I had two fantastic years, but the opportunity to work with Pep Guardiola was too good to refuse," he added.
Bravo won back-to-back La Liga titles with Barca and successive Copa America championships with Chile with whom he turned up 106 times and is also the captain. "Claudio is a fantastic goalkeeper and an excellent addition to our squad," Guardiola said. "He has experience and great leadership qualities and is in the prime of his life. He is a goalkeeper I have admired for a number of years and I’m really happy he is now a City player." Bravo is set for a swift return to Barcelona along with Guardiola, the former manager of the Catalans, as the Champions League draw today paired Bravo's previous and current employers.
He becomes City's ninth transfer of the summer following the capture of Ilkay Gundogan, Nolito, Aleksandar Zinchenko, Aaron Mooy, Leroy Sane, Gabriel Jesus, Marlos Moreno and John Stones.
Source: QNA