In recent days, everything indicated that Wojciech Szczęsny will soon become the first goalkeeper of FC Barcelona. The Pole used the international break to get back into optimal shape, and then he declared that he was ready to stand between the posts. – Yes, I have been preparing for these two weeks to be ready. Whether I play or not is the coach's decision, which I have to respect, but I'm training to play in this match and mentally I'm ready, he explained.
The Spaniards summarized Flick's decision regarding Szczęsny. “Explained”
The 34-year-old was supposed to take the place of Inaki Peni, whose performances sometimes leave much to be desired. Szczęsny's younger teammate lacks the decisiveness and self-confidence that the Polish goalkeeper was supposed to provide. Meanwhile, during Saturday's press conference, Hansi Flick revealed that… at the moment he has no intention of changing the goalkeeper. Both in Sunday's match against Sevilla and Wednesday's match against Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
– We are not planning to change the goalkeeper because of the Champions League. You never know what might happen, but we plan on Inaki Pena playing tomorrow and Wednesday. We are also happy that Szczęsny is with us. It's good that he says it [Szczęsny – przyp. red.]that it is ready to play. However, there is no reason why Inaki Pena should not play – Flick blurted out.
The German coach's decision regarding Wojciech Szczęsny was immediately commented on by the Spanish media. “One of the questions that hung over the Barcelona goal after Szczęsny's arrival was clarified by Hansi Flick himself. His words say it all,” summed up the journalists of “Mundo Deportivo”. Most portals only quoted the statement of the Catalan team's coach. “Szczesny will have to wait for his chance,” we read in “Sport”.
In such a situation, we will have to wait for the debut of the former Polish national team goalkeeper in the new club. There is also a possibility that Flick's words are in some sense a smokescreen, but this scenario is unlikely. If the German's declaration turns out to be true, Szczęsny's next chance to make his debut will be Saturday's El Clasico.