The dismantling of Marc-André ter Stegen continues. As the Catalans have now confirmed, the keeper will be stripped of the captaincy at FC Barcelona.
He received backing from his teammates, including Frenkie de Jong. “For me, he is still the captain of our team,” said the midfielder after the friendly match against FC Seoul (7-3) a few days ago.
A year ago, the 33-year-old was unanimously elected as Sergi Roberto’s successor. But now ter Stegen has lost the job, as Barca confirmed on Thursday afternoon. “Following the disciplinary proceedings initiated against player Marc-André ter Stegen and until this matter has been finally resolved, the club has decided, in mutual agreement with the sporting director and the coaching staff, to temporarily relieve him of his duties as captain of the first team,” the statement said.
Last season, Ronald Araujo, Frenkie de Jong, Raphinha, and Pedri were ter Stegen’s deputies, with the former now getting the nod.
A decision that was apparently made against the will of the team. At a press conference on the sidelines of the Asian tour, coach Hansi Flick said of the captaincy question: “As always, the team will decide, as we have done in the past. And then we’ll see.” Normally, the decision would have been made in the last week before the start of the season, Flick added. Barcelona will play its first competitive game on August 16, when it travels to RCD Mallorca for the La Liga opener.
The removal of the captain’s armband is the next blow for ter Stegen, who is at loggerheads with his long-time club. A few weeks ago, the DFB keeper, who was injured for months last season, was told that he would only be number three behind new signing Joan Garcia and Wojciech Szczesny. Ter Stegen nevertheless decided against a transfer.
When he instead underwent back surgery and announced that he would be out for three months, he finally drew the wrath of the club. Barcelona can only use 80 percent of his salary to register new players if ter Stegen is out for at least four months. New signing Garcia and Szczesny, among others, have not yet been registered for this reason.
Ter Stegen refuses to sign consent form
The club wanted to forward the injury and surgery report to the Spanish league’s medical commission in order to remove ter Stegen from the squad, but the goalkeeper is not willing to do so. This is a logical step from the keeper’s point of view: even if he is fit again after three months, he would not be eligible to play until January.
Ter Stegen, who joined the Catalans from Borussia Mönchengladbach in the summer of 2014, has a contract that runs until 2028. Due to the surgery, a transfer during the current transfer window is off the table, but it is likely to be a topic of discussion again in the winter. Without a regular spot at the club, Ter Stegen is unlikely to be in goal for Germany at the 2026 World Cup.
