Ter Stegen misses out on Barca squad again despite injury return

Marc Andre Ter Stegen has not been called up by Hansi Flick for Barcelona’s Tuesday night clash against Mallorca in La Liga, despite receiving the green light to feature in games by the club’s medical team.

Stegen suffered a knee injury last October and has not featured for the Blaugrana in any fixture this month although he regained fitness about a fortnight ago.

Hansi Flick revealed a week ago that Stegen is ready to play, yet a decision will have to be made by the club as to whether he regains his place in the sticks ahead of the in-form Wojciech Szczesny, who has only lost one game this year as Barca goalkeeper.

It appears the club’s technical bench has made the decision to keep Szczesny in goal for the remainder of the season, yet Stegen could return to the squad for Barca when they face Real Madrid on Saturday night in the heavily-anticipated Copa del Rey final.

Only two years ago in the 2022/23 season, Ter Stegen was awarded La Liga player of the campaign, and though he has not been at his best in the last 12 months, the German shot stopper will be aiming to remind the world of why he stands tall as one of the best in the last decade.

Should Barcelona edge Mallorca, they will be four wins away from a second La Liga title in three season, and that would be Stegen’s sixth La Liga title in 10 years at Barcelona.