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Tuesday, 01 June 2010 12:00 |
Braga snap up Nigerian star
Left-back Elderson Echiejile bought, Evaldo on his way to Sporting?
 Nigerian left-back Elderson Echiejile has signed a four-year deal with Braga. The capture of the international defender, who is part of Nigeria’s World Cup squad in South Africa, paves the way for the departure of Evaldo, who is expected to switch to Liga Sagres rivals Sporting.
“He has signed for four years with Braga, and will play in the Champions League,” confirmed the brother and agent of the former Rennes defender, Emmanuel Echiejile.
“He has already visited the club to see Braga’s facilities and was very happy with their ambitions. Both the coach and the president want to count on him. It’s a transfer that opens up a lot of possibilities for Elderson.”
The 22-year-old had been tracked by Braga for over a year and arrives at the Estadio AXA on a free transfer having reached the end of his contract with Rennes.
Elderson Echiejile himself released a press release today, in which the enthusiasm at taking on the new challenge that awaits him is patently obvious.
“I would like to take this opportunity to announce to the Os Arsenalistas of Braga, my family and those who have always supported my career.
Exciting and exhilarating
“Today is a very, very exciting day for me as a new and exhilarating chapter of my career has begun. The past few months have been full of difficult decisions and choices, however after lots of thought there was one clear choice and that was to leave the wonderful City of Rennes and embrace a fantastic challenge in Portugal with SC de Braga.
“I’m thrilled to be a part of a Club like SC Braga that is coming off of a historic season last year, finishing second ahead of some fantastic clubs such as FC Porto and Sporting Lisbon. It is also very appealing for me to be playing with a club that has recently had great Portuguese league & European success, but also looking to build on that success in coming years.”
The signing would appear to confirm that Braga will let go of Brazilian defender Evaldo. The man many analysts have trumpeted as the best left-back playing in Portugal has been the subject of transfer speculation for weeks.
Aston Villa are thought to be in the chase for his signature, although today’s Portuguese press suggests Sporting are close to tying up a deal for the 28-year-old.
by Tom Kundert
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For 7 years they have been nipping at the heels of the "Big 3". I'm sure this will continue.
A lot of people think Braga will fall on their face, thinking they are a one hit wonder. I would tell all of you to go and look at Braga's past European results. Bayern Munich, AC Milan, Portmouth, etc.
As a Braga fan, i am really excited about seeing the new team.