Barcelona president sends message to Ter Stegen following Girona loan: “We hope it’s just a ‘see you later'” | OneFootball

Following his loan move to Girona, FC Barcelona captain Marc-Andre ter Stegen has received a message from club president Joan Laporta.

Ter Stegen, who was finding minutes hard to come by at Barça since returning from back surgery, completed a temporary switch to Girona on Tuesday, and has even started training with his new team.

And, speaking to the media from Prague, where he is with the Barcelona team for their UEFA Champions League clash against Slavia Prague, Laporta sent his best wishes to the veteran shot-stopper.

“We hope it’s just a ‘see you later,'” said Laporta, as quoted by Mundo Deportivo.

“Marc-Andre, coming back from injury, needs to play, and he’ll have more opportunities to play at Girona. He’s an exceptional goalkeeper, one of the best in the world,” he added, praising the Barcelona captain.

Touching on the circumstances that led to his departure, Laporta remarked: “This situation has arisen. It creates conflicting feelings because we want the best for him, and at the same time, we want him at Barça.”

Ter Stegen has joined Girona. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)

“But we know that if he wants to play in the World Cup, as the German coach has said, he needs to play matches, and staying here, recovering from his injury, would have made that more difficult.” 

Continuing on Ter Stegen’s future prospects, Laporta added: “Marc-Andre knows that Barça is his home, that this is a loan until the end of the season. And then I hope he goes to the World Cup, and we’ll talk.

“He has a contract with us, therefore he remains a Barça player, and I wish the great captain all the best because he’s an exceptional person, a great person, apart from being a fantastic goalkeeper.”

Laporta also spoke about Barcelona’s chances of finishing among the top eight in the Champions League.

“It is an objective we have, and of course, I believe we have options if we win these two matches. What we do need to do is score goals because there could be many teams level on points,” he said.