Barcelona coach Hansi Flick expressed confidence that Iñaki Peña can step in as the team’s main goalkeeper while Marc-André ter Stegen recovers from injury.
Flick mentioned on Tuesday that the club is not feeling pressured to find a replacement for Ter Stegen, who will be out for several months due to a serious knee injury.
“Iñaki is doing really well,” Flick said before the team’s home match against Getafe in the Spanish league on Wednesday. “He’s a professional goalkeeper and has trained very hard for this. It can be tough for a backup goalkeeper to stay focused, but I can see that he is completely focused and ready to play.”
Ter Stegen, a long-time starter and one of the team’s captains, suffered a complete rupture of a tendon in his right knee during Barcelona’s 5-1 victory at Villarreal on Sunday.
“I feel truly grateful to all the Barça fans, teammates, rivals, clubs, and friends for the support and love you’ve shown me since Sunday,” he said on Instagram.
“I want to thank the Villarreal supporters for their respect displayed in the stadium; it means a lot to me. I feel positive and strong, and now I focus on my recovery.”
Flick added that Barcelona may look to the market to find another goalkeeper, noting that there are very young goalkeepers behind the 25-year-old Peña.
“We have to see what we are doing, and we will talk later,” Flick said. “But we are not under pressure; we are really confident with Iñaki.”
The 32-year-old Ter Stegen had played in all seven of the team’s matches this season. His game against Villarreal marked his 289th appearance with the club, moving him past legendary Antoni Ramallets into third place for the most appearances by a goalkeeper in Barcelona’s history.
Barcelona has had a perfect start in the Spanish league, winning all six of its matches so far.
