Barcelona want to keep goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny for the 2025-26 campaign, the club’s sporting director Deco has said.
The Polish goalkeeper has made 24 appearances for Barca this season, having come out of retirement to join the Catalan club earlier this season.
Marc-Andre ter Stegen, who is recovering from a long-term injury, is the club’s first-choice goalkeeper while Inaki Pena remains at the club but Barca want Szczesny, who is out of contract this summer, to stay.
“We are very happy with Tek (Szczesny),” Deco told Spanish TV channel DAZN before Saturday’s La Liga match against Celta Vigo. “It is very likely that he stays with us next season.
“He is a very experienced goalkeeper. Bringing him in was one of those coincidences in football.”
The Athletic understands that Szczesny is keen to remain at Barca beyond this season, with the expectation that the former Arsenal and Juventus goalkeeper will stay alongside Ter Stegen with Pena open to an exit.
On Tuesday, Szczesny described the goalkeeping situation at Barcelona as “delicate” after Ter Stegen returned to first-team training.
Szczesny said on Tuesday he was “not focused” on the possibility of a new contract: “We have only big games remaining this season, and I don’t want to lose my energy into negotiations and contracts. I want to win every trophy that we have in front and leave the rest to agents.
“There’s a chance that they are talking about this, but I want to know nothing about it.”
Barca No 1 Ter Stegen underwent surgery after suffering a serious knee injury in September, which led to academy graduate Pena taking his place before 35-year-old Szczesny became head coach Hansi Flick’s first choice in January.
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