Name Bruno Grau Full name Bruno Saltor Grau Playing position | Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) Place of birth El Masnou, Spain | |
 | ||
Date of birth (1980-10-01) 1 October 1980 (age 35) | ||
Current team Brighton & Hove Albion | ||
Bruno Saltor Grau (born 1 October 1980), known simply as Bruno, is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a right back for English club Brighton & Hove Albion.
Contents
He appeared in 128 La Liga games during six seasons, representing mainly in the competition Almería and Valencia. In 2012 he signed with Brighton & Hove Albion, going on to spend several years with the English club.
Spain
Born in El Masnou, Barcelona, Catalonia, Bruno was a product of RCD Espanyol's youth system. He only appeared once for the first team, playing eight minutes in a 3–1 home win over Rayo Vallecano on 29 September 2001; he was almost exclusively used by the B-side during his tenure, spending three of his four years in Segunda División B.
After a further two stints in his native region, with Gimnàstic de Tarragona (loan) and UE Lleida, Bruno joined UD Almería in the 2006 summer, being instrumental in the Andalusia side's first ever promotion to La Liga as a late bloomer. In 2007–08, he only missed four league games as his team overachieved for a final eighth place, and produced similar numbers in the following season.
In mid-June 2009, Bruno signed a three-year deal with Valencia CF and reunited with former Almería manager Unai Emery. He had previously arranged a transfer to Real Betis, but the move collapsed as the club was eventually relegated.
Brighton & Hove Albion
On 25 June 2012, after a further 33 league appearances for Valencia in two seasons combined, free agent Bruno signed a two-year contract for EFL Championship side Brighton & Hove Albion. He scored his first goal for his new team on 24 November, helping to a 1–1 home draw against Bolton Wanderers.
At the age of 35/36, Bruno was still the automatic first-choice in his position, helping the club promote to the Premier League at the end of the 2016–17 campaign after 34 years. Previously, in March 2017, the captain agreed to a one-year contract extension, and on 20 April he was included in the Championship Team of the Year for the second year running.