Diego Gutierrez Signs For Chilean Side AC Barnechea

Former Valour FC midfielder Diego Gutierrez has returned to Chile, signing with second division side AC Barnechea.

His former Canadian Premier League team had disclosed that he was unlikely to return back in January. He departs having made 31 appearances for Valour FC across all competitions, which ties him as the side’s all-time appearance leader alongside the now-retired Dylan Carreiro.

Last year saw Gutierrez had re-sign alongside Carreiro ahead of the Island Games, where he featured in all seven of the club’s matches in the middle of the pitch. In the year prior, he showed plenty of versatility as an attacker, central midfielder, and even a right-back during an injury crisis at the Winnipeg-based side.

Before he initially signed with the Valour FC, Gutierrez played his youth football in Chile, switching allegiances from Colo-Colo to Club Deportivo Palestino, for whom he made eight appearances over four seasons.

In 2017, he also made three appearances for Les Rouges at the U-20 level. His brother, Cristian, also developed at Colo-Colo and is currently with Major League Soccer side Vancouver Whitecaps.

AC Barnechea finished thirteenth out of fifteen places in Chile’s second division last season, which leaves a lot of room for improvement. His former team Colo-Colo were nearly relegated into the division from the top flight, but avoided doing so by way of a tight 1-0 relegation playoff.

Valour FC currently has fifteen players rostered for the upcoming 2021 Canadian Premier League season, with Gale recently disclosing that he was close to securing the ‘last couple pieces‘ of the squad, which include a key defender, a midfielder, and two goalkeepers.

The terms of Diego’s contract with AC Barnechea were not disclosed by the club.