Barcelona spent much of their summer hinting to some of their bigger earners and valuable players that they would be open for negotiations, as they looked to ease their salary limit issues. None more so than with captain Marc-Andre ter Stegen, who the club were looking to move on after signing Joan Garcia in the summer.
The Blaugrana ended up being able to register Garcia as a result of a long-term injury to ter Stegen, after back surgery ruled him out for four to five months. Due to the injury rule in La Liga, Barcelona were able to reallocate some of ter Stegen’s salary limit space. Before that however, ter Stegen was keen to fight for his number one spot.
Flick: “We must change the attitude. We are Barça and the fans deserve to see that we fight in every action. It’s not about remembering that we won three titles last year, this is a new season.”
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) October 17, 2025
Ter Stegen more open to a move from Barcelona in January
That had been the word from the Catalan capital for some time. Yet Florian Plettenberg of Sky DE has reported that while he has not made a decision either way, a move away from Barcelona is no longer off the table for the 33-year-old. Ter Stegen will have the words of Julian Nagelsmann’s ringing in his ears, with the German national team manager saying publicly that players need to have regular football to be in his World Cup squad.
🚨🆕 Marc-André ter Stegen has not yet made a decision on whether he will stay at FC Barcelona over the winter or move elsewhere. A transfer is no longer ruled out, despite other reports.
A final decision is still pending. If he stays, he risks ending up on the bench under… pic.twitter.com/vaRf9gxB32
— Florian Plettenberg (@Plettigoal) October 17, 2025
Ter Stegen still has 2.5 years remaining on his contract, one of the more expensive in the Barcelona squad.
Where could ter Stegen go?
The German international was linked with the likes of Manchester United and Chelsea in the summer, with no settled situations in goal at either club. Tottenham Hotspur, Newcastle United and the Red Devils have all been linked with ter Stegen more recently, and all three would be able to afford his wages. It may be that a loan move until the end of the season is the most logical option for all parties if Hansi Flick looks to stick with Garcia after both are back from injury.
