New Delhi: In a surprising turn of events, Wojciech Szczesny is set to come out of retirement to join Barcelona on a one-year deal. The Polish international, who retired earlier this summer, has already completed a successful medical and met with Barcelona’s sporting director, Deco. His signing is expected to be officially confirmed by Wednesday.
The 35-year-old will be present at Camp Nou today in the evening to watch Barcelona’s Champions League clash with Young Boys. Szczesny will replace Marc-Andre ter Stegen who suffered a season-ending injury against Villarreal last month. Although the transfer window is closed, Barca have been able to sign him as he was a free agent.
🚨🔵🔴 Wojciech Szczesny completed his medical as Barcelona player and he’s set to be in attendance tonight for UCL game vs Young Boys.
Deal done until June 2025, all set as he’s new Barça goalkeeper. pic.twitter.com/JqOXKRihgK
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) October 1, 2024
The 35-year-old retired from football this summer after Juventus confirmed him they won’t extend his contract. His Juventus contract was originally set to expire in 2025 but the club’s decision to sign Michele Di Gregorio from Monza prompted them to place Szczesny on the transfer list. So, he decided to hang his boots rather than make a move elsewhere but soon being tempted out of retirement by Barcelona.
Szczesny has enjoyed a glittering career making a mark, especially at Juventus where he made 252 appearances over seven seasons and won three Scudetti. He has also played for Roma, Arsenal, and Brentford. He has earned 84 caps for Poland before retiring from international football after Euro 2024.
Szczesny jersey number
With the signing almost done the question remained what number Szczesny would pick. In the current Barcelona first-team squad, only three numbers 12, 22, and 25 were available, and keeping in mind the La Liga rules a goalkeeper must wear one of the No. 1, No. 13, or No. 25 shirts in any squad.
With Ter Stegen being the club’s No.1 and Pena having the No.13 kit, the Polish star was left with no choice but to take the No. 25 shirt at Barcelona. Szczesny had worn No.1 shirt for most of his career at Arsenal and Juventus. He did wear No.25 during his loan spell at AS Roma and will get the same at Barcelona.
Wojciech Szczesny will wear the #25 shirt number at Barcelona.
— @mundodeportivo pic.twitter.com/4QiEkICFzS
— Barça Universal (@BarcaUniversal) September 30, 2024
Hansi Flick on Szczesny as starting goalkeeper
Hansi Flick in a press conference on Monday was asked about Szczesny and he made it clear in no uncertain terms that every Barca player needs to earn their spot in the team and that the 35-year-old after officially becoming a Blaugrana will need to do the same to take Inaki Pena’s place as number one.
Hansi Flick said, “I’m not talking about players who are not yet in the team. Players who are at Barça cannot be guaranteed a starting spot.” Flick states it as clearly as it gets and it’s even good for him to set the record straight.
No doubt Szczesny is a better keeper than Pena but he can’t just walk into the building thinking he will be given the number one spot straight away. Pena deserves a fair chance to prove that he can still be the starter even with strong competition. The training sessions and the games will make the decisions for Flick. The club have been told that he will need three or four weeks of training to return to full-match fitness after coming out of retirement.
Wojciech Szczesny is set to join Barcelona after coming out of retirement. He will replace the injured Marc-Andre ter Stegen and compete with Inaki Pena for the No. 1 spot. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
