Barcelona legend and Marc-Andre ter Stegen's former team-mate Ivan Rakitic still sees the German as the club's No. 1, despite Joan Garcia's arrival.
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Rakitic offers support to the out-of-favour Ter StegenGerman goalkeeper told he's lost his place in the teamRefusing to leave despite his situationFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
Ter Stegen is probably going through the most difficult phase of his career. After 11 years, he will no longer play an important role at Barcelona – something his former team-mate Rakitic finds incomprehensible. The Croatian maestro made it clear that he still sees the German as the best option to be Barca's first-choice keeper next season, despite the arrival of Joan Garcia from Espanyol and the renewal of Wojciech Szczesny.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesTHE BIGGER PICTURE
Per reports, Barca coach Hansi Flick hasinformed Ter Stegen that he is no longer the first-choice goalkeeper for the time being and will have to settle for third-choice behind Garcia and Szczesny. Despite the current situation, Flick has encouraged Ter Stegen to accept the competition for the goalkeeper position and continue to fight for a return to the team. The club, though, want to offload the German, who has placed certain demands in order to consider a departure. Currently, Ter Stegen is training away from the first team.
WHAT IVAN RAKITIC SAID
"If I have Ter Stegen in my team, Ter Stegen plays. That's quite clear," Rakitic asserted in an interview. "For me, it's clear: Joan Garcia is good, a goalkeeper with a lot of talent. But he's competing with Marc.
"Hansi will have a pretty tricky situation there, because you can only ever play one goalkeeper. And we know how it is: whether you're the first, second or fifth goalkeeper, everyone wants to play. It won't be easy. I'm sure Hansi has a plan. He'll try to create an atmosphere in which it works – because at the end of the day, it's the team that counts."
Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT?
Ter Stegen remains under contract at Barca until 2028, and has been linked with a number of suitors across Europe. The Blaugrana are intent on offloading the veteran goalkeeper, as their transfer plans for the summer could rest on the amount of sales they can manage.
