Barcelona goalkeeper Claudio Bravo has been spotted preparing to fly to England to complete his move to Manchester City.
The 33-year-old had been expected in Manchester on Thursday to finalise his move from the Catalan giants to the Premier League outfit, and it appears as though those reports were correct.
As captured by Ignacio Miguelez of AS, the Chilean shot-stopper was seen at the airport in Spain ready to take his flight to Manchester.
Bravo pone rumbo a Mánchester. Las imágenes y su mensaje de despedida en @JugoneslaSexta y @A3Noticias pic.twitter.com/xHiFPXdPlr
— Ignacio Miguélez (@IgnacioMiguelez) August 23, 2016
Barca announced on Saturday that an agreement was in place to sell Bravo to City, as noted by Sky Sports, while they are likely to bring in Ajax goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen to replace him in the coming days.
However, the move represents a major problem for Joe Hart, who now looks more likely to be forced to leave the Etihad given the additional competition and the lack of regular first-team football that he will receive.
The England international has been dropped for all three competitive games so far this season with Willy Caballero getting the nod from Guardiola.
While the veteran isn’t expected to be the long-term answer, Bravo will now come in immediately and take over the role of first-choice shot-stopper with Guardiola set to look favourably on his ability to play out from the back which has been cited as a key reason for the snub of Hart.
The Spanish tactician has been busy stamping his mark on the City squad this summer, but this is arguably one of the bigger calls he’s had to make since arriving at the club, with Bravo now under pressure to establish himself as a reliable presence between the posts.