La Liga goalkeeper defends under-fire Barcelona heavyweight – ‘He is top-notch’ | OneFootball

Real Betis goalkeeper Rui Silva has jumped to the defence of Barcelona captain Marc-Andre ter Stegen following the barrage of criticism directed at the German shot-stopper over the past 24 hours.

Ter Stegen was one of the key culprits as Barça suffered a 2-1 defeat to AS Monaco in their UEFA Champions League opener on Thursday night.

The 32-year-old’s ill-advised pass to Eric Garcia very early in the game led to the latter’s sending-off, putting the Catalans on the backfoot.

Later on, the Germany No. 1 ended up shipping in two goals that ideally should have been saved by an elite goalkeeper.

Naturally, there has been severe criticism directed towards Ter Stegen, with fans asking him to be replaced from the team.

Rui Silva backs Ter Stegen

However, Real Betis and Portugal shot-stopper Rui Silva has come out in defence of the Barcelona captain, stating that goalkeepers are also human and mistakes happen.

“When a goalkeeper fails, it’s unpleasant, but that has always happened and it will continue to happen. We have to understand that we are human. It’s impossible to be one hundred per cent infallible,” he said, as quoted by AS.

“Even goalkeepers who are completely focused make mistakes. I think it’s a bit unfair that we’re being punished, because that’s not the case when a striker misses.”

Rui Silva defended Ter Stegen. (Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images)

Silva went on to praise Ter Stegen, calling him a top-notch goalkeeper and one of his references, while insisting that the German will bounce back strongly.

“Marc-Andre is top-notch and has a great capacity to adapt. He’s been proving his quality for many years and I’m sure he’ll recover very quickly, that’s what makes the difference between some players and others,” said Silva.

“I’m sure that a goalkeeper of that level will give the best response in the next game he takes the field.”

Continuing, he added: “I’ve always looked at goalkeepers like Vitor Baía, Iker Casillas, Buffon or Rui Patricio. Ter Stegen is now my reference, because he is a complete goalkeeper and I would like to be like him and improve in all my good and bad aspects.

“It’s important to have a role model to look up to and Marc is one.”