These are decision times for Claudio Bravo. After finishing his contract at Betis, the Chilean goalkeeper will have to look for a new destination in his career or, otherwise, directly consider the possibility of retirement.
However, while that decision does not come, the historic goalkeeper enjoys his validity in the National Team, where he achieved a legendary mark. The native of Viluco was projected as one of the three goals in the team Ricardo Gareca for the Copa América 2024who even presented him as a starter in the last friendly in which the national team beat Paraguay 3-0.
And although He had to leave at halftime of the same match due to an injury, The truth is that the Argentine coach did not hesitate to take him to the continental tournament as one of the leaders in the Red team’s dressing room.
What’s more, the goalkeeper himself took it upon himself to lower the profile of his injury and clarify that this new setback will not prevent him from fighting for a position, against the competition of Gabriel Arias and Brayan Cortés.
“In the first ball I cleared, the rival striker crossed my path, I kicked him when I was clearing, that provoked me. some discomfort in the lateral area of the knee, but nothing to worry about. I left as a precaution. We’ll see tomorrow.” explained the former Manchester City player.
The truth is that It was not a good epilogue to the season for the goalkeeper trained in Colo Colo. After four years in the Betic team, the footballer ended his contract with the institutionthe same one that was not spread by the Andalusians.
Last season, it was the coach himself Manuel Pellegrini who demanded from the Verdiblancos leaders the importance of renewing Bravo. Now, after a season marked by injuries, both the club and the Ingeniero decided to release the goalkeeper..
“Claudio (Bravo) has given us a lot in these four years. First, with his ability to lead the group and, then, with his career, something very important to give hierarchy to the team. Every time he has had to play he has done more than well due to his quality,” said the coach after considering his departure done.
“He had a season that, at 41 years old, was a bit complicated. He had three very long injuries that prevented him from playing as much as he wanted. I think he has the maturity to know how to handle it,” he added.
Despite the praise, the goalkeeper trained in Colo Colo could not say goodbye to the Betic team as he would have liked. On the last date of LaLiga, against Real Madrid, It was said in the preview that the Chilean could start at the Bernanbéu.
Nothing is further from reality. After Rui Silva’s injury, Pellegrini decided on the third goalkeeper of the squad, Fran Vieites, who had a correct performance against the meringues. After the duel, the coach explained the reasons for his questioned decision.
“Claudio Bravo did not play because his contract with the club ends. That’s why we had to see Fran, who does stay at the club. Decisions had to be made for next season,” explained the Chilean coach.
The door closes in Spain and leaves the future of his career in uncertainty. Although the player has not said that this is his last season in the activity, it is also true that the range of options is narrowing as time goes by.
“All the speculation that is said about the future is something that does not worry me. It hasn’t worried me for years. To be honest, I still don’t have things clear. Yes, I have had approaches with several destinations, but in that I want to be intelligent and know how to choose well whether to continue or stop. That will be determined by where you have to go, whether it is in Chile or somewhere else,” the goalkeeper warned.
Along the same lines, he details that it is a family decision rather than a personal one. According to his statements, the next team that welcomes him must meet a series of requirements that accommodate its entire core.
“It all depends on what appears. If it is something that means moving many kilometers with my family or is a place where the adaptation conditions are not optimal, it does not make much sense.. For years I have been privileging these types of things, the family environment and reaching a place where one can see oneself adapted,” Bravo concluded.
But the player He still feels that desire to continue making saves on the playing field. This was demonstrated against Paraguaya duel in which, despite the injury, he showed himself with the same motivation that he has had in his 148 matches as a national team on Everyone’s Team.
After his last call, The former Barcelona goalkeeper is playing in his seventh version of the Copa América, like the Argentine Lionel Messi. A figure that puts both players as second on that podium, only surpassed by the Ecuadorian midfielder Álex Aguinaga and the Uruguayan playmaker Ángel Romano.
However, The goalkeeper broke a legendary record in the match against Peru, by becoming the oldest footballer to play a match in the Copa América, since the tournament was established in the distant 1916.. Furthermore, she was one of the most outstanding figures against La Roja. In this way, he surpassed the Bolivian Carlos Trucco, who played his last game in this tournament on June 29, 1997, in the Green’s defeat against Brazil, in the final of the tournament held in the highland country.
At that time, the naturalized Argentine had 39 years, 10 months and 18 days when he played that duel in La Paz against Canarinha. The now third The former Peruvian midfielder has this particular record of experienced footballers. Juan Carlos Basalar, who was 39 years, 4 months and 16 days old when his team lost 4-0 to Argentina, in Venezuela 2007.
Claudio Bravo enjoys a sweet present, waiting to continue stretching his legend. His name is already in the history of South American football.
