FC Barcelona suffered their first defeat of the Hansi Flick era to AS Monaco in the opening round of the UEFA Champions League. The Catalan club went down 1-2 to the French giants after having to play most of the game with 10 men.
Marc-Andre Ter Stegen’s mistake early in the game saw Eric Garcia sent off. Throughout the game, the German goalkeeper looked vulnerable and did not cover himself in glory. Post-match, instead of taking ownership, the club captain seemingly passed the buck on Garcia and labeled it a communication error.
This has led to widespread criticism among Barcelona fans with Ter Stegen at the receiving end. Amid the controversy, a recent video of Lamine Yamal recorded for the King’s League a few weeks ago has resurfaced on social media, further fueling the fire.
As per Mundo Deportivo, Lamine was asked to pick a seven-a-side team and the 17-year-old went ahead and named Inaki Pena as the goalkeeper of his choice. The other players in his team were Araujo, Cubarsi, Gavi, Pedri, Nico Williams and himself.
The Barcelona wonderkid’s choice to choose backup goalkeeper Inaki Pena over Ter Stegen has further fuelled the protests against the German shot-stopper. However, one must not read too much into Lamine’s choices.
From the team that he has selected, it looks like Lamine Yamal has gone with players who are his friends and who he has played with since a young age. It doesn’t necessarily point at disrespect towards someone else if he picks Inaki Pena.
It is often very easy to overreact in situations like the Monaco game. Yes, Ter Stegen did not cover himself in glory and he can be accused of often going missing in big games but one must not forget all his contributions to the club over the years.
Ter Stegen still remains one of the best shot-stoppers in the world on his day and he is just going through a rough patch. Trust the German wall to bounce back in style and help Barcelona win trophies in the season to come.
