Guardiola signs for Brescia

Former FC Barcelona captain Pep Guardiola has signed a one-year contract with Brescia Calcio, the Italian Serie A club said on Wednesday. A spokesman for the Serie A club said that the 30-year-old Spanish international was already training with his new team and would be presented to the media later on Wednesday.

Move 'should be a formality'
Earlier in the day Brescia said Guardiola had agreed to the financial aspects of a deal and was in the northern town to complete the move which the spokesman described as a "formality".

Seventeen years at Barcelona
Guardiola has been without a club since deciding to quit Barcelona at the end of last season after seventeen years with the Catalans. The stylish midfielder was linked with a series of English and Italian sides but failed to find a new team before the start of the current season.

Radio reports
News of a potential move to Italy first broke on Tuesday when Spanish radio stations reported that Guardiola would meet officials from Brescia on Wednesday with a view to signing a one-year contract. "We're optimistic, unlike on other occasions," the player's agent Jose Maria Orobitg was quoted as saying by news agency Europa press.

International return
Guardiola's signing should lead to his return to the international picture. He was omitted from Spain's squad for their two most recent 2002 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, after national coach José Antonio Camacho said he could not afford to pick a player who was not training or playing with a club.