Marc-Andre Ter Stegen to make Barcelona return against Real Madrid | OneFootball

Barcelona have been without the services of captain Marc-Andre Ter Stegen for a long time, but very soon, he will be back in contention to start matches.

Ter Stegen suffered a serious knee injury during Barcelona’s 5-1 victory over Villarreal in September. He was originally expected to miss the remainder of the season, but seven months later, he has been involved in training with his teammates as he awaits the medical green light to make his return to action.

And that will come in the coming days according to Relevo, who say that Barcelona will be able to count on Ter Stegen for this weekend’s Copa del Rey final against Real Madrid.

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Inaki Pena originally took over as Barcelona’s starting goalkeeper after Ter Stegen’s injury, although he was replaced by new signing Wojciech Szczesny at the start of 2025. The Polish veteran has been excellent in recent months, which is why the plan of Hansi Flick is for him to remain in goals for the rest of the season.

Ter Stegen could see some gametime between now and the summer, but for important matches like this weekend’s Superclasico, it will be Szczesny that gets the nod – although he has already made it clear that he is happy to cede to the German international when the time comes.

Barcelona are planning to have Ter Stegen and Szczesny as their two first team goalkeepers for next season, with Pena set to depart in the summer. Flick may opt to give the captain his starting place back in August, although that could cause frustration among supporters, who have been very impressed with the latter since he made his way into the starting line-up in January.

Ter Stegen will be hoping that he can collect another winner’s medal with Barcelona on Saturday, even if he plays no part at La Cartuja.