Dmytro Chygrynskiy

Dmytro Chygrynskiy is the first ever Ukrainian to play for Barça. The young centre half guarantees an aerial presence and strong defensive skills but is also good with the ball at his feet.

Born on 7th November 1986 in Iziaslav (Ukraine) Chygrynskiy is a young centre half and was a key member of the Shakhtar side that made history last season by winning the UEFA Cup, the first international trophy in the club’s history.

He started playing football in the youth ranks of Karpati Lviv, a small team from Ukraine’s First Division. When he was 14 he was spotted and recruited by scouts from Shakhtar.

Chygrynskiy made his Shakhtar debut in the 2003/04 season at the age of just 17, playing one league match. He already stood out for his good positioning sense and his ability to play the ball out of defence. Curiously enough, he made his European debut on 7th December 2004 against Barça, a match the Ukrainians won 2-0. However, he played just a few minutes in injury time.

Despite his youth, he was already a regular in the Ukraine under-21s, helping them to qualify for the final stage of the European Cup.

In the 2005/06 season Chygrynskiy went out on loan to PFK Metalurg Zaporizhia in order to get more experience, playing 15 matches and doing enough to convince the Shakhtar coaching staff to reincorporate him. He impressed with his determination, pace and ball skills.

He returned to Shakhtar before the winter break and went on to play 11 matches (3 goals) in the second half of the season, in the process winning the league title, his first trophy.

At the end of the season Chygrynskiy played in the under-21s European Cup, leading Ukraine to the final where they were beaten by Holland. He was voted into the team of the tournament.

National team manager Oleg Blokhin named him in the senior squad for the 2006 World Cup however, injury problems that he had suffered with the under-21s kept him on the bench throughout the five matches played by the Ukraine.

At the age of 20, in the 2006/07 season, Chygrynskiy captained Shakhtar to a second place finish in the league and to the Cup final, which they lost 2-1 against Dynamo Kiev. The following season he led the team to a league and Cup double and was voted best player in the Cup final. By now he was a fixture in the national team. Last season he made history by captaining Shakhtar to the UEFA Cup.

PROFILE

Chygrynskiy is a powerful defender with great prowess in teh air as he uses his 1.90cm frame to good effect at set pieces and when defending high balls. His speed is also a huge asset as he makes up ground on opposition forwards very quickly and that allied with his positional sense makes him a highly-respected centre-back. Since he was very young, the Ukrainian international has been tipped for the big time and his dedication and professionalism has always shone through and earned him plaudits.

HONOURS

Shakhtar Donetsk
2008/09 UEFA Cup
2007/08 Ukranian Supercup
2007/08 Ukranian Cup
2007/08 Ukranian Premier
2005/06 Ukranian Premier

Jeffren Suárez Bermúdez

Jeffren Suárez Bermúdez

The striker, born in Venezuela, joined the Barça youth set-up in 2004. From Juvenil B to the first team, Jeffren has come up through the ranks to the point that Guardiola has handed him a regular first team place.

He was just a year old when his family left Venezuela for Tenerife. Jeffren was a prodigious and skilful footballer from a very young age.

The Barça talent scouts spotted him and from the 2004/05 he had left CD Tenerife and was among the Catalan club’s youth teams. His first coach at FCB was Guillermo Hoyos, who played him in midfield, but as the years went by it became clear that he was better used out on the wings.

He coincided with Guardiola in the 2007/08 season at Barça B and played a major role in the promotion gained to Division 2B. He made his official first team debut under Rijkaard against Badalona in the Copa del Rey in the 2006/07 season.

His league debut came at the end of the 2008/09 season away to Mallorca. The Venezuelan of Canary origin has also played internationally for Spain at youth level.

PROFILE

A left footer but who can also play with his right, Jeffren Suárez is a winger than can unsettle defenders with his combination of speed and skill. He has an excellent cross and generally scored plenty of goals a season.

HONOURS

FC Barcelona
2009/10 European Super Cup
2009/10 Spanish Super Cup

Magic, goals and class for Barça

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A skilful and physically imposing footballer, an all-round goal scorer. That would be a quick and concise definition of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Barça’s second signing of the season. Ibracadabra’ is coming to the Camp Nou to continue working his own bra

Zlatan Ibrahimovic was born in Malmö (Sweden) of a Bosnian father and a Croatian mother on 3rd October 1981. He joins Barça at the height of his career and is recognized as one of the most lethal strikers in European football. He is one of that rare breed of total footballers: he’s deadly in the air, fast, effective in front of goal and mesmerizing with the ball at his feet. His style of football makes his team-mates play better.

Technique and power

Ibrahimovic has always stood out as a skilful player, scoring some amazing goals and displaying tremendous creativity. That’s why he’s known in Italy as ‘Ibracadabra’. He stands 1.92 metres tall and combines great technique with a powerful physique, making him particularly feared by defenders in the air, as well as making it difficult to take the ball away from him.

In short, the Swedish international is the perfect modern centre forward and goal scorer. Last season he scored 25 goals in the Italian league with Inter Milan.

Ajax at the age of 19

zlatan-ajax.jpgIbrahimovic started his career with Malmö before moving on to Ajax in 2001, where he joined up with Barça team-mate Maxwell. Here he started to get noticed on a bigger footballing stage and gave indications of becoming a world class star despite his youth. For part of his time at Ajax his manager was former Barça star Ronald Koeman.

The Italian league

After three seasons in Holland, where he won two league titles, the Cup and two Dutch Super Cups, Ibrahimovic signed for Italian giants Juventus, staying there for two seasons from 2004 to 2006. When Juventus were relegated to the second division as a result of the “Moggigate” scandal, he signed for Inter Milan.

Three successful seasons with Inter Milan

Ibrahimovic won three league titles and two Italian Super Cups with Inter Milan and has been an essential part of the starting line-up under both Mancini and Mourinho.

Ibrahimovic is also a key member of the Sweden international team and has been voted his country’s best player on three occasions (2005, 2007and 2008).

Ibrahimovic signs five-year contract

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Zlatan Ibrahimovic put pen to paper earlier this evening and agreed a five-year contract with the club in a deal which also sees Samuel Eto’o sign for Inter and Alexander Hleb move on loan.

At about quarter past seven this evening Zlatan Ibrahimovic officially became a Barca player after signing the contract that brings him to the club for the next five years.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic, accompanied by his agent Mino Raiola, signed the contract in Joan Laporta’s office with the President, Txiki Begiristain and club Vice-President Rafael Yuste representing the club.

46 million plus Eto’o and Hleb

2009-07-27_FIRMA_IBRAHIMOVIC_04.jpgBarça will pay 46 million Euros to Inter, as well as Eto’o, valued at 20 million and the loan of Alexander Hleb for a season. If Inter wish to sign the Belarus midfielder after his loan period, they have a first option to buy at 10 million Euros, plus 2 million according to appearances and results.

Ibrahimovic’s buy-out clause has been set at 250 million Euros.

Maxwell delighted at Barça

Roger Bogunyà

In his official presentation to the media, Maxwell, Barca’s new left back has said that “today is a very special and happy day for me ... it is a dream come true.”

Serious, relaxed and humble, the first new addition to the treble winning squad, Maxwell, was officially presented today in Sala París at the Camp Nou. In his first official statement since signing, he said: “today is a very special and happy day for me. It is a dream come true. This is the strongest team in Europe”.

Four years, and option for one more
2009-07-17_PRESENTACION_DE_MAXWELL_002.JPGBefore the presentation, Maxwell visited the offices to sign his contract, which will be for four seasons, with an option to stay for a fifth, depending on the number of games the Brazilian plays for Barça in his fourth year. The buy-out clause on the contract has been set at 50 million euros.








Praise from Txiki
Toon_Maxwell_B.jpgBarça’s director of football Txiki Begiristain, who attended the press conference along with president Joan Laporta, explained why they had signed Maxwell. “We understood that it was a position that needed improvement. He is a Brazilian player, but has grown up in Europe and where there is a very similar philosophy to our own, at Ajax, and he has also played top level competition at such a team as Inter.”

When asked to describe his new acquisition, Txiki Begiristain had no doubt that “he is top class, has a good physique and plenty of skill”.








His role
2009-07-17_PRESENTACION_DE_MAXWELL_015.JPGMaxwell has come to Barça just after Sylvinho’s contract ran out on June 30. “I know I am here to replace a player that has left and I know that competition for places at the club is a positive thing”, he said when asked about his role in the team, where he will be competing with Frenchman Éric Abidal for the left back place.







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