With Ter Stegen set to miss the next seven to eight months with his torn patellar tendon, FC Barcelona are looking to replace him with a free agent in the coming few days.
FIFA and La Liga regulations allow the Catalans to sign an unemployed player in these circumstances, and one of the players who meets this criterion and who has been closely linked with Barcelona in the last few days is the former Juventus goalkeeper, Wojciech Szczesny.
He was reported to be the preferred option of the new Barcelona coach Hansi Flick, and a recent report from SPORT indicates that negotiations between the two parties are going quite well. The goalkeeper is open to playing for the Blaugranes, and the Catalans have already offered him a contract till the end of this season.
Under this contract, the Pole will earn around €3 million in salary gross and some bonuses. For now, the club has offered him a contract till the end of the season, but this association can be extended if the shot-stopper’s performances satisfy the club.
However, the goalkeeper still has to finalize the terms of his disassociation with his former club, Juventus.
Barcelona had opened contacts with Szczesny earlier this week, as they wanted to know his stance on taking the job after Ter Stegen’s injury. Although he has already retired, the Pole is open to taking this new challenge, while the opportunity to share a dressing room with Lewandowski once again also motivates him to come to an agreement with the Blaugranes.
For now, the only barrier to a successful move to Barcelona remains the terms with which he had terminated his contract with Juventus. The Italians had agreed to pay the severance amount of the year he still had on his contract, but there was a clause in that agreement that these payments would not be made if he signed for another team.
Thus, the Pole rejected the move to Saudi Arabia, and now Barcelona will have to ensure Szczesny’s move to the Blaugrana club does not hurt his economic interests, while also keeping his salary within affordable limits.
The goalkeeper is currently enjoying holidays in Marbella, hoping that this move materializes soon. Barcelona are also working to ensure his incorporation as soon as possible.