Barcelona first goalkeeper and captain Marc-Andre ter Stegen has had a tough month of March. Both at home with a divorce from his wife Dani and at work with an injury that kept him out of Wednesday’s Champions League clash with Borussia Dortmund. – It was at the Estadio de la Cerámica in Villarreal where the German goalkeeper jumped to reach a high ball, but slightly off balance due to contact with an opponent, he landed awkwardly and suffered a complete rupture of the patellar tendon in his right knee.
Barcelona are about to win La Liga and are paving their way to the final of the Champions League.
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Barcelona captain Marc-Andre ter Stegen has revealed that face-to-face talks with Pep Guardiola almost led him away from Camp Nou and over to Manchester City.
After making a name for himself for three seasons as the first goalkeeper for Borussia Mönchengladbach, Ter Stegen was 22 years old when he left Germany for Barcelona in 2014. But the Catalan club also brought in Claudio Bravo from Real Sociedad that summer, and the two had to share playing time.
Bravo was preferred in La Liga, while Ter Stegen played 21 games in the Champions League and Copa del Rey. The following season, he made seven league appearances, but the situation still frustrated the young goalkeeper and he seriously considered a transfer.
“We actually considered changing clubs,” Ter Stegen told Bild as he looked back on the summer of 2016, which was Guardiola’s first season as Manchester City boss.
“We even had a meeting in Barcelona. Pep flew over, and then we met at a friend’s house. He explained his ideas to me and said that he was going to Manchester City that summer and that he would like to have me with him. Pep really put in the effort.”
“I thought to myself: ‘This could be the solution to my problem’, and the plan they had at City seemed very interesting. If you look at the last few years, it has worked perfectly [for them].”
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Ter Stegen would not be second choice
In the end, it was then Barcelona coach Luis Enrique who put an end to it all by announcing that Ter Stegen would not be allowed to leave.
“I replied that on the one hand I really appreciated it, but on the other hand I wanted to be the first goalkeeper,” Ter Stegen explained. “When he said we could see how the pre-season was developing, I almost lost my temper, but I stayed together. I said, ‘This is my wish now, and I’m going to inform the board.'”
“The board also said that they would not give me vagrants under any circumstances. And then, I think it was three weeks later, Pep signed my teammate Claudio Bravo for Manchester City. At first it felt strange, but in the end I was very happy because I didn’t really want to leave – and I became the first goalkeeper.”
Bravo struggled in the Premier League and lasted just one season before City spent big money on Ederson in 2017. Ter Stegen, meanwhile, has made 420 appearances for Barcelona and became club captain in 2024, having joined the team’s management team two years earlier.
Barcelona won 4 0 over Borussia Dortmund at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys on Wednesday, March 15 there is a second leg at SIGNAL IDUNA PARK.
Again, it was La Liga’s top scorer Robert Lewandowski who made the big difference. He scored two goals while Lamine Yamal and Raphinha added one each.
