Barcelona to be without Marc-Andre ter Stegen for at least two months
Barcelona set to be without their starting goalkeeper.
The news keeps keeps getting worse for Barcelona as they are set to be without Marc-Andre ter Stegen for the start of the new La Liga season.
According to Diario Sport, the German goalkeepr will be out for at least two and a half months following surgery on his right knee.
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The club released an official statement confirming the news as well as the estimated timetable for recovery.
Ter Stegen had been playing with the injury and was deciding on whether to get the surgery once the season was over or opt simply for treatment.
The injury must not have been serious enough to impede from playing but it could have affected him.
He is a keeper who is very comfortable with the ball at his feet and is integral in playing from the back.
But it was obvious that something was wrong in the match against Bayern Munich. The usually sure footed Ter Stegen was making bad pass after bad pass that led to danger.
Opting for surgery might be the right move. Samuel Umtiti faced a similar situation with his knee. He opted for treatments and hasn’t been able to string along a number of games before going down because of knee issues.
The injury throws a wrench in Barcelona’s plans.
The injury and surgery could not have come at a worse time for the club. As everyone knows by now, the plan for next season is to rejuvenate the squad and lower the wage bill thus meaning that a number of players have been made transferable.
One of those players is the back-up, Neto. The Brazilian was brought over this season from Valencia with Jasper Cillissen heading the other way. However, in separate deals as a way for both clubs to balance their books.
Neto played mostly in the Copa del Rey but did not exactly impress. Now the club need to decide whether or not they still plan on moving him on.
Their other choice is to play Barça B keeper, Iñaki Peña. He went back and forth between the first team and Barça B and played in the Segunda B playoffs where the team made it all the way to the final.
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If the goal is to finally give a shot to the young players, then picking Peña makes the most sense. Ultimately, however, the decision will be left to new manager Ronald Koeman.