Barcelona goalkeeper Inaki Pena seems to see his last months at the club where he was with him as a teenager, with a departure on the cards. The 26-year-old had patiently waited for his chance and after replacing Marc-Andre ter Stegen for three months due to injury last season, this season did the same. But after Hansi Flick had made the choice to hand over the runway to Wojciech Szczesny, Pena seems to have been set on departure.
He would start contract discussions with Barcelona in January, but those conversations were put on hold after Szczesny started starting competitions in his place. Now it seems almost in stone that he will leave, with his deal in 2026. Director of Football Deco has made it a goal not to start next season with players in the last year of their deal, with the exception of veterans Inigo Martinez and Robert Lewandowski.
Recently it turned out that Galatasaray, where Pena spent three months on loan three seasons ago, were interested in Pena, but Sport says that he will also have offers from the Premier League and La Liga. Real Betis has protected the signature of Alvaro Valles for the following season, and he will become their starter, but also wants to bring in an alternative. After Betis allowed Vorn Roque to leave for Palmeiras and to break his loan agreement, Barcelona is willing to negotiate on favorable conditions.
While Pau Victor is also on the Betis agenda, Barcelona Pena might even allow it to continue to a free to Sevilla if she retained a percentage of his sold-out fee. In the meantime, Celta Vigo is also not sure of their position, without agreement on a renewal with veteran Vicente Guaita. When he leaves, Pena is one of their favorite options.
Moving to Balaidos would probably offer Pena a starting role, something that he would probably not have with Betis, and would have more difficulty in Galatasaray. At the age of 26 it would not be a surprise if that would wave the balance for Pena, who did not enjoy regularly starting football since his Barca Atletic Days. Barcelona probably doesn't seem to demand much in the way of compensation.
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