Goalkeeper, Hakon Valdimarsson has joined Brentford in a £2.6m transfer deal from Elfsborg.
Valdimarsson has made 53 appearances for Sweden’s IF Elfsborg across the last three seasons during which he kept 20 clean sheets, including 14 in the 2023 season alone which saw him crowned Allsvenskan Goalkeeper of the Year with 22 goals conceded in 29 league appearances.
Copenhagen and Aston Villa saw bids rejected for the 22 year-old but Brentford have agreed an initial £2.6 million transfer, with a further £769k in add-ons which would take the total fee up to £3.37m.
Valdimarsson has signed a four-and-a-half year contract which will see him play in West London until June 2028.
Head Coach, Thomas Frank commented: “I’m very, very happy that we’ve managed to sign Hákon; there was competition from a lot of other clubs, including some in the Premier League. We are growing as a club, and we have proven that we make players better.
“Hákon is an exciting keeper. He is good at dominating his box, claiming crosses from set-pieces and in open play. His distribution is also at a high level. He fits the way we want to play, which is very important.”
Frank also iterated that Valdimarsson has been brought “in to strengthen our goalkeeper group” alongside Mark Flekken, Thomas Strakosha, Ellery Balcombe and Matt Cox, with Frank confident that his new signing can challenge the quartet although Cox is currently out on loan at Bristol Rovers.
Brentford’s First-Team Goalkeeping coach, Manu Sotelo added: “He will come eager to show his current skills: he is an agile, quick and reactive keeper.
“His learning skills are outstanding, so we are looking forward to developing his huge potential.”
Valdimarsson began his career at Iceland’s Grotta where he made 84 senior appearances between October 2017 – July 2021, during which he helped the club claim promotion from 1.deild to Urvalsdeild.
Valdimarsson could be in contention to make his debut for the Bees away to Tottenham in the Premier League on Wednesday 31 January, although he faces a tough task to displace Strakosha and Balcombe on the bench with Flekken set to start.
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