Valdes dreaming of Wembley glory

Valdes dreaming of Wembley glory

Published Oct. 26, 2010 3:47 p.m. ET

Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes has admitted it is his dream to emulate the class of 1992 and be crowned European champions at Wembley.

This season's Champions League final will be played at Wembley and it will be the first time the famous London stadium has staged the final of Europe's premier club competition since the 1992 European Cup final.

The game went into extra-time but then Barcelona's Dutch star Ronald Koeman scored a superb free-kick to beat Sampdoria 1-0 and see the Spanish giants become European champions for the first time.

That night has a special place in the hearts of Barca fans and Valdes alike, and the 28-year-old keeper, who was in Barca's youth ranks at the time, is determined to write his own name into the Catalan club's history.

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"My big dream is to win the Champions League final at Wembley," he told El Mundo Deportivo.

"I still have a picture of the goal Koeman scored in Barca's first final there."

Valdes helped Barca win the Champions League in 2006 and 2009, as well as winning four league titles and picking up a World Cup winners' medal as part of Spain's triumphant squad this summer.

Yet Valdes is eager to keep improving and claim more silverware before hanging up his gloves.

"I am very pleased with my career but I still want more," he added.

"I have improved my standard over the years but it is still necessary to perfect any phsyical aspect of my game.

"I want to stay with Barca until the end of my career because this club has offered me so much and confidence is key in football.

"I may retire when I'm 35 or 36, but for me, Wembley is a symbol from when I was a boy.

"It's a big stadium and the scene of our first Champions League triumph. Just like any fan, it is a major point in my childhood."

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