Can Inaki Pena be a reliable successor for Ter Stegen?

Since Barcelona signed Marc Andre Ter Stegen from Mönchengladbach in May 2014, the German has been the mainstay goalkeeper for the Catalan club through thick and thin. Witnessing some of the most iconic moments in FC Barcelona's history, Ter Stegen has been a pillar at the post and one of the few consistent performers at the club.

Since the iconic Barcelona's 2014/15 UCL triumph, he has been the only player to continue for Barca. However, with time, Barca needs to look for the German's replacement, as he is currently 32 years old and might have only a few seasons left at the club.

Can Inaki Pena be a reliable successor for Ter Stegen?

Currently, Inaki Pena is the second-choice goalkeeper for the German; however, Ter Stegen's performances have somehow shadowed the Spaniard's true potential. Thus, the question remains: can Inaki Pena become the ideal successor to Ter Stegen?

Inaki Pena's rise from the Barca youth ranks had been impressive, which helped the goalkeeper pace up his career quickly. Barcelona had loaned Pena for 6 months to check his readiness at the senior level after he had graduated from Barcelona B. His time at Galatasaray was decent enough, as the goalkeeper got eight starts for the Turkish giants.

Pena's loan ended on June 30, 2022, making him a Catalan player again. Since then, Pena has started 22 games for FC Barcelona, out of which 17 came in the last season. When Ter Stegen was out for a back injury for about 3 months, the mettle fell on Inaki Pena's shoulders to take the club forward.

However, Pena's performance hadn't been extraordinary at Barca, as of his 17 appearances, Pena could only manage 3 clean sheets. Moreover, conceding 32 goals didn't help his profile either, as the Spanish goalkeeper's performances have been very mediocre, considering that he was backed by the defense line consisting of Ronald Araujo, Jules Kounde, and Joao Cancelo.

That was also the time that saw Barca lose crucial points, which hampered their chances to get past their Classico rivals, Real Madrid. Thus, in all honesty, Inaki Pena is still to prove his caliber for Barca. Though the 25-year-old hasn't had many opportunities at the club, he has failed to capitalize when he was looked upon.

With the new season ready to kick off in less than a month, chances are thin that the Barcelona board will bank upon a new goalkeeper, making Ter Stegen the obvious choice. However, Barca needs to brainstorm who will be the successor to the German's legacy, as Pena still hasn't proven his potential at the biggest stage.