War brewing? Barcelona expect Ter Stegen to be out for 4-5 months, not three

FC Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen has announced he will be out of action for three months as he is set to undergo surgery for his back problem.

In the statement confirming that he will undergo surgery, Ter Stegen specified that his absence will last three months. This falls short of the four-month minimum required by La Liga regulations to declare a long-term injury.

Without meeting that threshold, the club is not permitted to remove his salary from the wage bill and use the space to register a different player.

Barcelona believe Ter Stegen will take longer to recover

However, according to Esport3, Barcelona medical staff estimate that, given the recurrence of the injury and the fact that the area has already been operated on, Ter Stegen’s recovery will likely take between four and five months.

This discrepancy hints at a deeper conflict between the player and the club’s management.

Tensions between Barça and the German goalkeeper remain unresolved. While Barcelona has reportedly explored the possibility of moving him on, Ter Stegen has firmly refused and reiterated his intention to remain the starting goalkeeper.

His announcement further escalates the situation. If Ter Stegen’s absence were officially declared as lasting four months, as originally expected, the club would have been able to use 80% of his high salary to register other players, such as Joan Garcia or Marcus Rashford.

But, Ter Stegen’s statement has thrown a spanner into the works, as the tug of war between the two parties escalates.

Only Inaki Pena eligible to play

Barcelona’s goalkeeping situation is now highly unusual. As of now, Inaki Pena is the only goalkeeper available to play in the league opener against Mallorca on 16 August.

With Ter Stegen injured and neither Joan Garcia nor Wojciech Szczesny registered due to salary cap restrictions, the club is left with limited options.

In this context, head coach Hansi Flick has had to include Pena in the squad for the Asia tour and put any potential departure for the goalkeeper on hold.