Valentin Barco is our latest signing of the summer transfer window, and here we help you get to know the 22-year-old better following his move to Stamford Bridge…
Doing the hard yards
Valentin spent much of his childhood in the Boca Juniors academy, but he isn’t from Buenos Aires. Born and raised over 200 kilometres away in a town called 25 de Mayo, his parents drove huge distances to take him to training during his early days.
He and his family would later move to the Argentinean capital and it was there that Valentin developed into one of the brightest young players in the country.
Positional shift
Valentin was a striker at the start of his junior career, but Boca turned him into a marauding left-back. Since turning professional he has mostly played in that position, but has also operated at left wing-back, left midfield and in central midfield.
‘Colo’ Barco
Valentin is affectionately known as Colo or el Colo, which is short for ‘colorado’ – a standard Argentinean phrase for those with ginger hair.
Cool on the spot
Valentin’s breakout season for Boca Juniors was in 2023, when he also got his first taste of the Copa Libertadores – South America’s equivalent of the UEFA Champions League.
After Boca’s last-16 tie against Uruguayan side Nacional had finished 2-2 on aggregate, penalties were required to decide a winner. Valentin had only just turned 19, but he stepped up to take Boca’s fifth spot-kick with the chance to win it. He coolly sent the keeper the wrong way, and the celebrations in La Bombanera could begin.
Boca went on to reach the final, with Valentin starting in left midfield against Fluminense in the Maracana. He was replaced 12 minutes from time, shortly after Boca had equalised, but it was the Brazilian team that would eventually triumph after extra-time.
Young star
His impressive performances for Strasbourg earned him a spot in Lionel Scaloni’s Argentina squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. At 21 years old, Valentin was the youngest member of the group that reached the final before losing 1-0 to Spain.
Valentin has represented Argentina’s senior team on five occasions so far, scoring twice in wins over Zambia and Iceland earlier this year and making his World Cup debut in the group stage victory against Jordan.
