The idea for FC Barcelona moving forward is that they cannot allow spontaneous injuries to derail their season. While it would be quite easy to blame their lengthy list of sidelined players, the goal for Hansi Flick’s team is not to do that. Instead, Barcelona wants to face their challenges head on and deal with what they have on their hands.
Unfortunately, while they have solid replacements for most of their injured stars, there is one position where the issue becomes a lot more complicated. Marc-Andre Ter Stegen, Barça’s captain and number one between the sticks, is now injured and his season could potentially be over.
To replace him immediately, however, the club would have to look at certain margins that have been made clear by La Liga. Any player who they wish to bring in before the January transfer window must be a free agent and should have a salary that covers no more than 80% of Ter Stegen’s total salary.
One such name that seems to fit all the bills for this would be 37-year-old Costa Rico goalkeeper Keylor Navas. Unfortunately for Barcelona, the fact that Navas has previously been a key player for Real Madrid made it seem quite unlikely that he would ever even consider moving to Barcelona at any point given the history between the two El Clasico rivals.
Apparently, however, it would seem that the rivalry itself will not be an issue after all. Instead, as stated by Mundo Deportivo, the player would be open to joining Barcelona and his agent, Jorge Mendes, could end up playing an important role in making sure this deal can happen.
For Navas, the goal is to return to top-level football and feel important again. That is why, despite his rather significant financial demands, he remains one Barça’s radar and his signing could be facilitated thanks to Mendes’s good connections with the Catalan club and the history between them.
As for the South American goalkeeper, one whose three-peat in the Champions League remains a legendary achievement with Real Madrid, this move to Barcelona could become a real possibility given that he would be an accessible signing and one whose arrival would also mean the signing of a match-ready player.
That is because following his contract’s expiration with PSG, the player has been training daily in his home country as he waits for his future to be resolved. The 37-year-old goalkeeper remains keen on returning to Europe’s big leagues again, and Barça could just be his opportunity to do so.