Veteran keeper accepts a U-turn out of retirement to join FC Barcelona

In FC Barcelona's 5-1 win against Villarreal, though the unit had multiple positives from the dominant win, the thing that concerned everyone was their star keeper Ter Stegen's injury. At the stroke of halftime, the German number 1, in an attempt to collect the corner long ball, felt significant pain, with reports showing he would be out for more than 8 months.

Veteran keeper accepts a U-turn out of retirement to join FC Barcelona

Since then, the utmost priority for Hansi Flick and staff has been to decide how to proceed in the season in Ter Stegen's absence. As possible replacements, although a number of names including former Real Madrid keeper Keylor Navas, former Liverpool star Loris Karius, and Serie A champion
Wojciech Szczesny was considered, the club eyed the Juve star the most because of similar playstyle abilities.

In fact, what has been the biggest factor in Szczesny's case is that he, being a Barcelona admirer, considered it a great disrespect to not listen to the club's demand. Even though it required him to come out of retirement to represent the Blaugrana club, the former Juventus number 1 agreed, considering Barca's difficult situation.

Speaking about the possibility of him making a Barcelona move, Szczesny mentioned,

""I respect Barça's history very much; they are one of the best clubs in the world. I understand the difficult situation that has been generated after the injury of Marc-André Ter Stegen, and I think it would be disrespectful on my part not to consider this option.""

- Wojciech Szczesny

Reports from Diario SPORT had indicated that considering the Polish goalkeeper's move is proceeding well, he could be a Barcelona player in the coming days, and that has now become a reality. As per Transfer Expert Fabrizio Romano, Wojciech Szczesny will sign his Barcelona contract until June 2025, a one-year contract on Monday. Moreover, the keeper's medical tests are to take place in Spain in the coming days.

From FC Barcelona's perspective, not only this signing but the way they are signing him has been commendable. As per reports from Diario SPORT, the Blaugrana club isn't giving Szczesny the notion that he would be the first-choice keeper from the very start, but rather, he would have to compete with prodigy keepers Inaki Pena and Ander Astralaga for a spot in the playing XI.

Not only this way, the club has added more options to its keeping inventory but rather laid the foundation for the role's future with Inaki Pena and Astralaga pushing hard against the seasoned veteran Szczesny for a playing XI spot. Clearly, this deal could be one of the best ones for FC Barcelona, for the club's future, as they hope to win some major titles in the upcoming years.