After Barcelona’s goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen underwent surgery on his right knee and is expected to miss the entire season, the Catalans are searching for a replacement. According to Sport, the recently retired Wojciech Szczesny, who played alongside Cristiano Ronaldo in Juventus, is their top choice.
Per the report, head coach Hansi Flick wants the 34-year-old Polish keeper because of his reliability. In his last campaign with Juventus, where he played from 2017 to 2024, he received 30 goals in 35 appearances, with an average of less than a goal per game. He also maintained a clean sheet in 15 games.
However, Szczesny chose to terminate his contract with Juventus in August before announcing his retirement. He explained that while he originally planned to retire in 2025, the signing of Michele Di Gregorio led to his departure from the club a year before his contract was set to expire.
“I wanted to play for one more season because I felt I could still give so much, but after Juventus, I was not ready for other challenges,” Szczesny recently explained. Sport also reports that Robert Lewandowski, who is a good friend of Szczesny, is trying to convince him to accept Barcelona’s offer.
Apart from Juventus, Szczesny has played for clubs such as Brentford and Arsenal in England, as well as Rome in Italy. For Poland, he has had 88 appearances. While he might be Barcelona’s first choice, the Catalans are also interested in Keylor Navas. Meanwhile, Claudio Bravo, who also recently retired, offered his services to his former club.
Barcelona are pulling from La Masia
For now, Barcelona’s first goalkeeper is 25-year-old Iñaki Peña, while Ander Astralaga is the second GK. Flick has also called up 18-year-old Áron Yaakobishvili, who will be the third goalkeeper after American Diego Kochen, from Barcelona B, also suffered an injury.
What happened to Ter Stegen and when is he set to come back?
Ter Stegen sustained a “complete rupture” of the patella tendon in his right knee after falling backward while making a save during Sunday’s match against Villarreal, which the Cules won 1-5.
Barcelona confirmed that his surgery at Barcelona Hospital was successful, but no recovery timeline was provided. Typically, the rehabilitation period for this type of injury ranges from six to nine months.