In the ugly battle between Barcelona’s board and the club’s captain Marc-André ter Stegen, it was the German goalkeeper who swallowed his pride to bring an end to an increasingly unseemly saga.
The rift between Ter Stegen and the club he has called home for the past 11 years was sparked by a back injury he suffered while on international duty in June. The 33-year-old was forced into surgery on this recurring issue and subsequently sidelined for a prolonged period of time.
Barcelona argued that Ter Stegen would be out for at least four months, which would open up a loophole in La Liga’s strict financial regulations to allow the club to register freshly acquired goalkeeper Joan García. However, the club’s existing skipper initially claimed he would be back in three months and then refused to have his medical records released, thereby preventing the league from assessing the severity of his injury. As various Spanish outlets feverishly reported, “war” had broken out.
Ter Stegen was promptly stripped of the captaincy and subjected to disciplinary proceedings. As fans began to turn against the seemingly rebellious goalkeeper, he was forced to publicly diffuse the situation with a statement confirming that he would sanction the release of his medical data.
Having backed their own player into a corner, Barcelona gave Ter Stegen his armband back. The six-time La Liga champion was still on shaky ground with some sections of the fanbase and received a decidedly mixed reception when he grabbed the microphone at the club’s preseason friendly against Como on Sunday. By the time he had delivered his impassioned appeal, the crowd were on their feet applauding.
“For me, personally, it has been important to resolve the issue between the club and me, and now it’s time to look forward,” Ter Stegen, who was wearing the No. 1 shirt which had been taken off him during preseason, told the crowd.
“We’re all very excited for this season to start; it will be a very demanding campaign. We have new faces, one quite familiar one, in Tek [Wojciech Szczęsny]. I want to give them my support. With these signings, we’re going to be better, stronger… and I’m sure they’ll fit in very well with this locker room.”
“We must keep working,” Ter Stegen continued, “there are aspects to improve, as always, and we will fight again for all the trophies. And, with your help, we hope to win all the titles possible. Thanks to Hansi [Flick] and his staff for their great work. As fans, we really enjoyed it, as did I, who was in that position for a long time due to injury, with exciting football. We have a squad with a lot of character, with a lot of energy on and off the pitch, and we hope to be successful.”
“I love you, culers,” he concluded to swelling applause, “long live Barça and long live Catalonia.”
