Barcelona optimistic that long-term absentee could return before end of season

In September, Barcelona were devastated by captain Marc-Andre Ter Stegen's serious knee injury. The 32-year-old German goalkeeper suffered the crushing blow in the 5-1 win away to Villarreal, and it was reported at the time that he would miss the rest of the 2024/25 season. However, this may ultimately not be the case.

As reported by Sport, Ter Stegen is undergoing a very new stem cell treatment, and this has proven to be very successful in previous cases. Injuries are also known to heal faster. That's why Barcelona are quietly optimistic that they can have their first-choice goalkeeper back before the end of the season.

In concrete terms, Barcelona believes that Ter Stegen could be available as early as April. However, his return would only happen if they are 100% confident that he will not suffer a recurrence.

Inaki Pena has done relatively well in the two months he has been Barcelona's starter, while Wojciech Szczesny has yet to play since being signed as Ter Stegen's replacement for the rest of the season. Things could get complicated if three top goalkeepers have to compete for one spot later in the campaign.