Hansi Flick’s choice to vary Barcelona’s beginning goalkeeper – from Inaki Pena to Wojciech Szczesny – in latest weeks has been a subject of a lot debate.
After all of the 25-year-old homegrown star had not completed a lot unsuitable since turning into the common starter following Marc-Andre ter Stegen’s damage.
As such, his ouster from the beginning XI sparked some pressure, with the participant and the supervisor mentioned to have had a ‘tense dialog’ concerning the state of affairs, which might additionally have an effect on the goalkeeper’s future on the membership.
Barcelona captains supporting Pena
Amidst all this, SPORT stories that Inaki Pena’s emotional turmoil has not gone unnoticed by his Barcelona teammates.
Certainly, the dressing room has not distanced itself from the state of affairs, significantly relating to displaying assist for the younger goalkeeper, who’s struggling emotionally.
The La Masia graduate isn’t the one first-team participant who finds it obscure this choice, and whereas they respect Flick’s choice as they need to, they haven’t hesitated to voice their doubts.
The truth is, the group captains confirmed nice solidarity with the goalkeeper, reaching out to encourage him and urging him to maintain his spirits up and proceed working laborious for the nice of the group.
Not the beginning goalkeeper. (Picture by Lars Baron/Getty Photographs)
On a person degree, some ‘heavyweights’ of the squad have additionally stood by his facet, even asking if one thing had occurred that they have been unaware of, which could justify such a sudden change within the goalkeeper place.
A few of his teammates haven’t absolutely understood the the reason why Flick has solely chosen to depend on Szczesny. The conversations didn’t finish there, as some people even straight questioned the German supervisor concerning the state of affairs.
The reality is that Pena is likely one of the most beloved and revered gamers within the Blaugrana dressing room, particularly among the many group of younger academy gamers resembling Gavi, Hector Fort, Fermin Lopez, and Lamine Yamal.
“They see him virtually like a father,” membership sources from Ciutat Esportiva say, “as a result of he’s a complete instance as an expert.”
Nonetheless, with the state of affairs now being as it’s and Pena’s contract expiring in 2026, it is not going to come as a shock to see the goalkeeper contemplate a departure in the summertime.