Barcelona will be able to register newly signed goalkeeper Joan García for the upcoming season after La Liga confirmed that Marc-André ter Stegen qualifies as a long-term injury case, the club announced Wednesday.
The ruling allows Barcelona to free up salary-cap space and register other players without violating financial fair play rules. “La Liga’s Medical Committee has ruled that goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen’s injury meets the long-term injury criteria,” the club said, adding that García’s registration will be formalized immediately.
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Ter Stegen, 33, underwent lower back surgery last month and is expected to be out for about three months. The injury had caused a dispute between the club and the goalkeeper, who initially refused to sign the medical report submitted to the league. Barcelona temporarily stripped him of the captaincy before reinstating him after he signed the report last week.
Ter Stegen said he never intended to hinder the club from signing new players and described the past few months as “especially difficult, both physically and personally.”
The goalkeeper missed almost all of last season due to a knee injury and was sidelined for about two months in 2023 after a back operation. In his absence, Iñaki Peña and veteran Wojciech Szczęsny took over goalkeeping duties. García, signed from Espanyol in June, will now be officially added to the squad.
Source: Agency