Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen was back in action on Tuesday night as he made his first appearance since undergoing surgery in the summer in the Copa del Rey win over Guadalajara.
Ter Stegen’s name on the teamsheet caused plenty of surprise as it had been reported earlier in the day that Wojciech Szczęsny would get the nod.
Did the Catalan media get it wrong or did Hansi Flick change his mind at the last minute? We don’t know for sure but Flick hardly gave the goalkeeper a ringing endorsement when asked about his team selection.
“Marc is the captain and has played many games in the 12 years he has been here,” Flick said afterwards. “We talked with the rest of the coaches and we wanted to give him the opportunity to play. He is back, it is only for this match and I think it is a good next step.”
Flick has already said publicly that Joan Garcia is his No. 1 this season and his “it’s only for this match” comment simply seemed to reinforce that message to Ter Stegen.
Indeed the general feeling seemed to be that Barca were putting Ter Stegen in shop window and making it clear to any potential admirers that the German is fit again and ready to play after a long spell out.
Ter Stegen went on to have a comfortable evening between the sticks as Barca kept a clean sheet and safely progressed to the next round. Yet it’s not clear if or when we’ll see him in action again this season for Barcelona.
A January exit still seems the best option for both parties. Ter Stegen surely needs regular game time if he wants to be No. 1 for Germany at World Cup and clearly isn’t going to get that at Barcelona.
Yet finding a destination for Ter Stegen won’t be easy midway through the campaign. The goalkeeper doesn’t seem interested in a move to Turkey and it’s not clear yet if he has any other realistic offers for the second half ot the campaign.
“It’s his decision” was the latest update from Flick when quizzed about Ter Stegen’s future ahead of the match. The Barca coach has made his stance on the issue clear and given his backing to Garcia. Now it’s up to Ter Stegen to decide.
