Barcelona Registers Joan García Due to Ter Stegen's Long-term Injury

Madrid, Aug 14 (AP) Barcelona has received confirmation from the Spanish league that newly signed goalkeeper Joan García can be registered for the upcoming season due to Marc-André ter Stegen's long-term injury status, the club announced on Wednesday.

This decision allows Barcelona to alleviate their salary cap and facilitates the registration of additional players without breaching the financial fair play regulations.

“Barcelona hereby announces that La Liga's Medical Committee has ruled that goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen's injury meets the long-term injury criteria established by current regulations,” the club stated. “The club will proceed tomorrow to immediately formalize the registration of player Joan García.”

The length of Ter Stegen's injury led to a dispute between him and Barcelona. Initially, the 33-year-old goalkeeper refused to sign the medical report that the club needed to submit to the league.

Ter Stegen mentioned that his recovery from lower back surgery, which he underwent last month, would take about three months. However, the club believed the recovery period would be longer and sought to place him on the long-term injury list.

After Ter Stegen's refusal to sign, Barcelona initiated disciplinary proceedings and removed his captaincy. He was reinstated as captain after he eventually signed the report last week.

In signing the report, Ter Stegen clarified that he never intended to hinder Barcelona's ability to sign new players and was solely focused on returning to play as soon as possible. He stated, "These past few months have been especially difficult for me, both physically and personally.”

Ter Stegen missed almost the entirety of last season due to a knee injury and was out for about two months in 2023 following another back operation. Iñaki Peña and veteran Wojciech Szczesny filled in for Ter Stegen during his absence last season.

Barcelona secured the signing of Espanyol's goalkeeper García in June. (AP)

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