Barcelona have already made their first signing of the summer, with goalkeeper Joan Garcia having arrived from local rivals Espanyol. The 24-year-old was one of the best in his position in La Liga last season, which is why there is a lot of excitement about him having joined.
As it turns out, Barcelona had not planned to make a move for Garcia this summer, but as explained during an interview with La Vanguardia (via MD), sporting director Deco saw it as a market opportunity.
“Goalkeeping was not a priority, but we have seen an opportunity for the market, for the present and for the future. There are not many young players at his level. We never spoke to Joan before the end of the league. We have spoken to his agent telling him that if the player opened the option of Barcelona, we would like to talk to him and we explained the idea.”
Barcelona now have two elder statesmen goalkeepers in Marc-Andre Ter Stegen and Wojciech Szczesny alongside Garcia, and Deco made it clear that the latter was brought in with a clear purpose.
“I give a very simple example. Liverpool have a goalkeeper called Alisson, 32, and they signed one of the best in La Liga, Mamardashvili, 24. If you have players who are 32-33 years old, you have to try to make a plan forecast.”
Garcia’s arrival has led to significant speculation on the future of Ter Stegen, who is expected to be third-choice goalkeeper next season. Deco gave his thoughts on the matter.
“I don’t have to talk to Ter Stegen. My obligation is to make the best possible team for the coach. This is not my business. In addition, there is no contract in which it says that you are going to play. From here, it is the coach who makes his decision.
“We made a decision to sign a young goalkeeper, which means he can play tomorrow or be on the bench, or play in one or two years’ time. We have expectations with Joan that then have to be fulfilled. Everyone who enters here starts from scratch, none of them arrives with an advantage over the others. I have great respect for Marc but with Joan we had to make a decision for the present and the future. The coach will have to decide.”
