Del Bosque: Alba has an 'extraordinary' future ahead of him

Del Bosque: Alba has an 'extraordinary' future ahead of him

Jun 29, 2012 8:45:00 AM

The coach of the European and world champions has been full of praise for the young left-back, who is on the verge of completing a return to Barcelona

Spain head coach Vicente del Bosque has declared that he expects a bright future for Jordi Alba.

The 23-year-old defender has been an ever-present figure in La Roja's backline at Euro 2012, playing the entire 90 minutes in each of the team's matches in the tournament so far.

It was announced on Thursday that Barcelona had reached an agreement worth €14 million with Valencia for Alba, and Del Bosque had nothing but praise for the left-back.

"We are delighted with him," Del Bosque is quoted by EFE as saying. "This is a position for which we previously had an extraordinary player like Joan Capdevila.

"Now we have found a replacement for such a specific position, something that is not easy.

"Considering his age, I think he has an extraordinary future ahead of him. I did not tell him to shut Nani down [in Wednesday's match against Portugal], because it is not easy, but I think he handled him well.

"He knew how to defend and attack against Portugal. He did everything a full-back has to do, and he did it well."

Alba will now return to Camp Nou after spending part of his youth career in the Catalan club's ranks.

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