Brazil goalkeeper Diego Alves

Diego Alves - a Brazilian goalkeeper, who stands for the Spanish "Valencia". This year he turned 31 years old, and for the goalkeepers this is the time of his heyday. Therefore, Diego Alves can still play for many years at a high level, although his best period is still behind.

Carier start

Diego Alves was born on June 24, 1985 in Brazil, where he spent quite a long time playing football on an amateur level. He entered the professional club only at the age of 16 - in 2001 he was invited to the Brazilian Botafogo. However, two years later the goalkeeper moved to Atletico Mineiro, with which he concluded a professional contract a year later. Only in 2005 Diego Alves was able to make his debut for the club, having played three games for the season. But from next year he has already become the main goalkeeper of the club, having played 24 matches for the year. In 2007, he appeared on the field 34 times and showed such an impressive game that interested European clubs, especially the Spanish "Almeria". And in the summer of 2007, for two and a half million euros, the Brazilian moved to a new club.

Moving to Europe

Diego Alves - goalkeeper, who predicted a great future. Then it was believed that "Almeria" for him - it's just a step to move into a stronger team. But it turned out that for four years the Brazilian spent in this club, playing for him 123 matches - and only in 2011, when he was 26 years old, Diego Alves was invited to "Valencia". "Almeria" has never been a strong club, almost all the time spent in the second division, so the invitation from one of the strongest clubs in the country meant a lot to the player.

Going to "Valencia"

Then the Brazilian's talent began to unfold, and the world could see how good Diego Alves was the goalkeeper. Brazil was for him a zone of comfort, and only in "Almeria" he was able to show himself to the fullest. In "Valencia" he came as the main goalkeeper and for a long time successfully played this role. For the five years he spent at the club, he went on the field 142 times. Now it's the sixth year of the Brazilian goalkeeper's stay in the Spanish club, and this season he played ten matches, conceding 17 goals. Alves could not hold a single game, having kept his gate at the castle. His contract with the club is calculated until 2019, and at the moment he does not have a strong competitor who could claim his place in the base. But the performances of the club leave much to be desired, so there is a likelihood that investors will want to see a more upscale goalkeeper at the gate. But until this happens, Diego Alves remains number one in the club.

National team appearances

In the national team of Brazil, Alves was called extremely rarely. He even made his debut for the national team at the age of 26 - just when he moved to Valencia. In total, Alves spent nine matches for the national team, conceding only two goals. In seven games he was able to defend "to zero." Unfortunately, all nine matches were friendly, and the goalkeeper never defended the colors of his country in a competitive match. In 2016, he went to the America's Cup, but spent all three matches on the bench.