Ter Stegen not considering Barcelona exit despite being fully aware of Joan Garcia development | OneFootball

Barcelona have positioned themselves as the favourites to secure the signing of RCD Espanyol goalkeeper Joan Garcia.

Indeed, multiple reliable sources have now confirmed that an agreement over a long-term contract is almost done, following which the Blaugrana will activate his €25 million release clause.

One of Garcia’s conditions before agreeing to a move has been that he wants to play regularly as the first-choice goalkeeper and has reportedly received guarantees about it from Deco and Hansi Flick.

It leaves current No. 1 and club captain Marc-Andre ter Stegen in a difficult position heading into a World Cup year.

Ter Stegen remains intent on staying

However, according to Florian Plettenberg of Sky Germany, Ter Stegen fully intends to stay put at Barcelona despite being completely aware of the club’s plans to sign Joan Garcia.

In fact, the 33-year-old German international wants to stay the No. 1 between the sticks for the Blaugrana.

No change of plans for Ter Stegen. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)

Barcelona, for their part, are open to offers for their captain but there are no suitors at the moment and given his high wages, it can be a challenge to find a club willing to take him on.

So, the report suggests that there is a plausible scenario wherein both Ter Stegen and Garcia will have an open competition for the starting goalkeeping berth at Barcelona next season.

It must be noted that following the recent developments surrounding Garcia, the ‘#TerStegenOut’ campaign once again began trending on ‘X’.

Ter Stegen is understood to be upset about the criticism and the social media campaign from the fans but has so far not changed his stance on wanting to continue at the club.

It remains to be seen how the situation evolves in the coming days, with Garcia expected to make his decision formal soon.