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5 hours ago
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Barcelona have completed the signing of Espanyol star custodian Joan Garcia after a long and intense battle with Arsenal, who have been after the Spaniard since last summer.
However, now that he has landed in Camp Nou, it will be interesting to see what happens with their designated first-choice goalkeeper, Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
Garcia was one of the best goalkeepers in La Liga for the last couple of seasons, and at 24, he could be the long-term fix for Barcelona between the sticks.
The Blaugrana established contact with Garcia following Ter Stegen's persistent injury problems, and despite Garcia's association with arch-rivals Espanyol, they managed to strike a deal by triggering his release clause of €25 million.
The La Liga champions desperately needed a new custodian, and though Garcia came up through the ranks at Espanyol, they couldn't let go of this deal because of his affordable release clause and given the talent that he possesses.
With Garcia's signing, Ter Stegen's future at Camp Nou looks uncertain despite his recent remarks of staying at the club. It is understood that Hansi Flick will discuss with him about his future at the club, following his recent reports suggesting an interest from Galatasaray.
Ter Stegen joined Barcelona in 2016 from Borussia Monchengladbach, and after some sensational years as their first-choice goalkeeper, the German custodian has seen a huge drop in his game, coupled with persistent injuries.
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After he was sidelined last season, Wojciech Szczesny came out of retirement and replaced Inaki Pena, who couldn't step up in the German's absence. With Szczesny impressing Flick, there's a possibility that the Polish custodian could well be the second goalkeeper in the reckoning after Garcia. In that case, Ter Stegen and Pena could leave the club.
Despite Szczesny stepping up, Barcelona conceded 39 goals in 38 La Liga games last season, the highest among the top four teams in the league. Similarly, they also conceded 24 goals in 14 Champions League fixtures. So, the signing of a solid goalkeeper was the need of the hour.
What does Joan Garcia bring to Barcelona?
Garcia has had a breakthrough season in 2024/25 as he finished the campaign with the most saves (145) in La Liga ahead of some of the stalwarts in world football. His 73.6% save success rate was bettered by only two goalkeepers in La Liga last season - Unai Simon and Jan Oblak.
Catalan Product.
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However, it was much better than the three Barcelona goalkeepers. As per FBref, he had the highest goals prevention in La Liga 2024/25 with 8.4 GPrv. To put things into perspective, Ter Stegen only in his 2022/23 campaign, managed a better GPrv of 9.15.
Garcia managed to achieve all these statistics despite playing for a club that finished 14th in the La Liga points table last season, but at a certain point, they were one of the relegation contenders.
Overall, the 24-year-old's arrival will ruffle a few feathers, but it is also a crucial decision for Ter Stegen with the World Cup next year, and if he wants to continue being Germany's no.1 option, the upcoming season will be extremely crucial for the 33-year-old.
His situation at Barcelona looks uncertain as they are reportedly willing to keep Szczesny with a renewal offer reportedly on his table. But the Polish custodian is keen to wait for Ter Stegen's decision before re-committing.
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