A few years ago, Marc-Andre ter Stegen was hailed to be the best goal-keeper in the planet, and the former treble winner warranted that tag with an array of stunning displays. He quickly rose to the top as one of the finest shot-stoppers in the world and during some crisis times for Barcelona, he remained a lone warrior.
However, adding further disappointment to the already depleted Barcelona squad, the German custodian has found it difficult to get going lately and isn’t at his usual best. He has been directly culpable in many of the goals the club conceded this season and his form currently is one of the biggest concerns for manager Xavi Hernandez.
Although there are a couple of other options in Inaki Pena and Neto, neither of these footballers haven’t shown enough promise to warrant a position ahead of ter Stegen and after their draw in the weekend against Granada, the pressure has intensified further. As it stands, the club are looking at options to replace the 29-year-old.
Stole Dimitrievski from Rayo Vallecano, one of the league’s most highly-rated goal-keepers, is apparently in agreement with the club on personal terms and could sign for the Catalan giants very soon. The Macedonian keeper has garnered global attention with his heroics at goal this season, and has quickly become their first-choice ahead of Vallecano’s number one Luca Zidane.
The 28-year-old keeper is one of the main reasons why the club are dreaming of European football next season, who are just three points behind third-placed Real Betis as it stands. He was signed initially on loan from Spanish third tier club Gimnastic, before signing a permanent deal in January 2019. Since then, he had been a pillar in helping the club gain promotion last season.
He has drawn close to three saves per game in the first 18 games of the season and kept six clean sheets. He also saved two penalties this season, and is leading the goal-keeping stat charts across many departments.
He also makes a lot of saves coming out of his line, a trait which will help him adapt to the football Xavi is willing to play at Camp Nou. Head coach Andoni Sagarna will be keen to not let go of this talented footballer before the end of this season, and it’ll depend significantly on the exits Barcelona will sanction, as they already had a lot of trouble registering Ferran Torres.
Despite Macedonia not having an impressive spell at Euro 2020, Dimitrievski averaged four saves per match and also saved a penalty. He was one of their shining lights in an otherwise dim campaign, and since then, has remained in the radar of many clubs across Europe.
Ter Stegen, who turns 30 this April, signed a contract in 2020 that keeps him at the club until 2025. This will make it really difficult for the club as they will be keen on getting a big transfer fee and the goal-keeper’s agent will be trying to get him a lucrative contract. He had accepted a 50% wage cut after the club’s financial position was found to be in tatters after the new wage cap restrictions were implemented by La Liga.
One of the fan favourites in Catalonia, ter Stegen joined the club from Borussia Monchengladbach in 2014. He was with the Gladbach academy for 14 years before making his professional debut in 2010. A series of impressive performances caught the attention of Barcelona, who paid 12 million Euros to bring the keeper to Spain.
He has made 302 appearances for the Catalan giants since then, bagging four La Liga titles, five Copa Del Rey titles and the Champions League in 2015. He was named in the UEFA Team of the Season twice, in 2014/15 and 2018/19.
