To compensate for the absence of its goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen, who has a serious knee injury and is expected to be sidelined until the end of the season, Barça have reportedly chosen Wojciech Szczesny… who has been retired since this summer. But before signing, the Pole must settle a clause with his former club Juventus.
Will he already come out of retirement? While he had bowed out after leaving Juventus Turin by mutual agreement this summer, Wojciech Szczesny could put his boots back on sooner than expected. And not just anywhere. According to Marca, the Polish garden has been chosen by Barça to replace its goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen, victim of a complete rupture of a patellar tendon during the victory against Villarreal (5-1) on Sunday, and who should miss the rest of the season.
If he is ready to give his consent, the 34-year-old goalkeeper must first sort out his situation with Juventus. After seven years in the colors of the transalpine club, he terminated his contract in mid-August, which initially expired on June 30, 2025, but a clause stipulates that in the event of signing with a top club within a certain period, he will have to pay financial compensation to Juventus. It remains to be seen whether, at the end of the negotiations, the clause will finally be lifted or whether he will have to pay this sum, which is not very high – and whether, possibly, Barça will participate in the payment. The Catalan club would wait until everything is in order before starting the official steps for his recruitment.
Holder or replacement?
The staff, who for the moment “trust Inaki Pena”, Marc-André Ter Stegen’s usual understudy, hope that the file will be closed quickly so that he can begin his preparation as soon as possible, even if he will not automatically be a starter upon his arrival and will have to prove himself. But, with his experience, the Pole is convinced that he will succeed in establishing himself once he has regained optimal physical condition. After starting his professional career at 19 at Arsenal, where he wore the jersey 181 times, he then joined Italy and Juventus in 2017. In seven years, he played 252 matches and won three league titles and three Italian Cups, in addition to his FA Cup and League Cup.
The Warsaw native has also accumulated national caps: 84 in 15 years, the last being the Euro 2024 match against Austria. “Although my body is ready for new challenges, my heart is no longer in it. I feel that the time has come to give all my attention to my family,” he wrote on Instagram to explain his retirement at the end of August. If his recruitment were to fail, Barça, still first in the championship, would have other options up its sleeve. Keylor Navas would probably become the priority, even if the names of Guillaume Restes, Alvaro Valles and Stole Dimitrievski have also been mentioned.
