Before making the decision to go with Wojciech Szczesny to replace Marc-André ter Stegen, who suffered a full rupture of the patella tendon in his right knee during last Sunday’s 5-1 win over Villarreal in LaLiga, the Catalan side was linked to a Paris Saint-Germain player.
It’s been reported that Szczesny will undergo a medical on Monday before signing a contract that will keep him until the end of the season. Nonetheless, the former Juventus standout wasn’t the only name in the rumor mill.
SPORT reported that former La Masia ace and current PSG goalkeeper Arnau Tenas could have been a player Barcelona looked at during the January transfer window.
Tenas was highly regarded at La Masia but left Barcelona last year when the club decided not to renew his contract. Furthermore, the player was part of the Spanish team that won a gold medal at the Summer Olympics.
While it doesn’t appear this move will happen, CBS Sports’ Jonathan Johnson noted that it made sense as to why the Spanish side were linked to Tenas.
“It does seem like Szczesny is going to go there,” Johnson stated on the latest PSG Talking podcast. “So come out of retirement that he took a couple of months ago and go and replace testing for the rest of the season. But the interest in Tenas was understandable because they know what he’s like as a player.
“They know that he suits their style and he’s also quite similar to the profile, the current guy that they’ve got stepping in for ter Stegen since the injury. But I think in those terms, maybe Tenas has a little bit more experience, but ultimately, I think the whole discussion that we’re having here shows just why they’ve gone for Szczesny instead, because Szczesny has much, much more experience. And I think Barça needed somebody who was potentially available on the market.”
While the Polish shot-stopper appears to be going to Barcelona, Relevo reports (h/t Football Espana) that the process has been put on hold for now.
According to the report, Barcelona cannot complete a deal for Szczesny because of “technical problems with LaLiga.” As a result, approval from La Liga is needed before it can happen.
