The speculation has been mounting for a number of months, as to who Barcelona would turn to in their search to replace goalkeeper Víctor Valdés, when he leaves the club in the summer.
A whole host of top goalkeeping talent has been linked, with a list as long as a keeper’s arm at full stretch. Whilst many of the names linked have been wide of goal, when it comes to the options available, one name has always remained in the firm grip of the media speculation. That of Borussia Mönchengladbach’s 21-year-old keeper, Marc-André ter Stegen.
We reported on 11th October, how Catalan radio reports were adamant that Sporting Director Andoni Zubizarreta and goalkeeping chief Ricard Serra had made their choice, that ter Stegen was their man and that the green light had been given to open official talks with the German and his Bundesliga club. The value of the deal, set at a fee of €8 million, plus a further €2 million in additional incentive payments.
Between then and now, clearly negotiations have remained ongoing, whilst in the meantime, there were also seemingly deceptive reports ter Stegen being offered a new contract by his club, as well as his agent publicly claiming that there was no offer on the table from Barcelona, INSIDE informs.
