Barcelona goalkeeping star has already surpassed his 2024/25 numbers in La Liga – Report | OneFootball

Joan Garcia is no longer just keeping FC Barcelona safe, he is outperforming the level he already showed a year ago. After another huge display in the 1-0 win over Rayo Vallecano, the Barca goalkeeper has now gone beyond one of his most impressive numbers from last season, and that says plenty about the level he is reaching.

According to Mundo Deportivo, Joan has already prevented 9.47 expected goals in La Liga this season. That figure is higher than the 7.49 goals prevented he recorded across the whole of the 2024-25 league campaign when he was still at Espanyol.

That is the clearest sign yet that Barcelona are not simply getting a good goalkeeper in form. They are getting a goalkeeper whose impact is now even more decisive than it was during his previous breakthrough season.

He has reached this mark while making just 63 saves so far, less than half of the 145 total saves he made last season, which underlines how efficient and high-level his interventions have been. The Rayo game was another strong example.

Joan kept his 12th clean sheet in 23 La Liga matches and produced four notable saves in the match, including an early stop from Carlos Martin. Were it not for the Spanish goalkeeper, Barcelona could easily have lost the game.

This is what makes his rise feel so important. Barca are not relying on a goalkeeper who is busy because the defence is collapsing. They are relying on one who steps in at the exact moments that preserve results, and that is a far more valuable quality.

To put his performance into perspective, here is how some of his competitors for the Spanish national team are performing. Unai Simon has prevented 0.5 goals in La Liga this season, while David Raya is at minus 0.88 and Alex Remiro at minus 2.23 in the same category. Whether fair or not, those numbers cast Joan in a very strong light.

Joan has received his first ever call-up to link up with La Roja. Luis de la Fuente is unlikely to change too much ahead of the World Cup, but Joan’s presence in the picture would be massive for the 24-year-old shot-stopper.

It remains to be seen how long it takes before he establishes himself as a starter for Spain.