Ter Stegen is back, but could shortly leave for good

Marc-Andre ter Stegen has finally recovered from his back injury and will soon be ready to join Barcelona's squad. A year ago, the captain's return would have been fantastic news for Hansi Flick and the team. Now, it's almost as if no one minds... And here's why.

The German's struggles at Barca began in September 2024, when he ruptured his patellar tendon, underwent surgery, and was set to miss seven months. During his absence, Inaki Pena and then Wojciech Szczesny took on the role of Flick's first-choice custodians, and when he returned, the situation was no longer the same as before.

The Pole had shone, and the Catalans' boss didn't want to risk anything, leaving him in goal for the key Champions League and La Liga clashes, while Ter Stegen returned to the starting lineup only when the title race had already been decided.

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To make matters worse for the German, Barca signed Joan Garcia from Espanyol last June, planning to make him a starting keeper, and the captain didn't like it at all.

Later on, he expressed a desire to play in an interview with BILD, declined to give a speech at the title celebration ceremony, and ultimately refused to give his authorization for sending his medical report to La Liga officials, so that the club could register Garcia.

After a disciplinary case and the president Joan Laporta's intervention, things somewhat calmed, though Ter Stegen didn't even get a chance to return to the pitch, as he suffered a back injury in July and underwent another surgery.

Now, he's back, but no one seems to care too much - Flick in the first place. After all, the tactician openly declared, "Joan Garcia is my number one goalkeeper," ahead of the UCL game against Eintracht Frankfurt, as per Mundo Deportivo.

Szczesny is expected to be the 24-year-old's understudy, and Ter Stegen... Well, he could leave Camp Nou very soon.

His wish is to return to the national team, and Mundo Deportivo brought to mind the Germany head coach Julian Nagelsmann's statement, "To go to the World Cup, he has to play."

As things currently stand, Barca won't help Ter Stegen in this endeavour, so he'll most likely have to seek playing time somewhere else.

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Matchday 6

Tuesday

18.30: (6.75) Kairat Almaty (4.20) Olympiacos (1.50)

20.45: (1.28) Bayern Munich (6.75) Sporting Lisbon (10.5)

23.00: (3.35) Atalanta (3.50) Chelsea (2.25)

23.00: (1.17) Barcelona (8.50) Eintracht Frankfurt (15.0)

23.00: (2.00) Inter Milan (3.85) Liverpool (3.75)

23.00: (2.10) Monaco (3.80) Galatasaray (3.45)

23.00: (3.10) PSV Eindhoven (3.75) Atletico Madrid (2.30)

23.00: (3.00) St. Gilloise (3.70) Olympique Marseille (2.35)

23.00: (1.45) Tottenham (4.60) Slavia Prague (7.25)

Wednesday

20.45: (2.00) Qarabag (3.60) Ajax (4.00)

20.45: (1.45) Villarreal (4.50) Copenhagen (7.00)

23.00: (5.80) Athletic Bilbao (3.80) PSG (1.62)

23.00: (2.40) Benfica (3.40) Napoli (3.20)

23.00: (10.0) Club Brugge (5.20) Arsenal (1.37)

23.00: (1.28) Borussia Dortmund (6.00) Bodo/Glimt (9.50)

23.00: (1.18) Juventus (7.25) Pafos (15.0)

23.00: (3.10) Bayer Leverkusen (3.50) Newcastle (2.40)

23.00: (2.55) Real Madrid (3.85) Manchester City (2.65)

***odds are subject to change***