Barcelona manager Hansi Flick has decided who will start in goal for both legs of their Champions League semi-final with Inter Milan.
Wojciech Szczesny has been almost ever-present between the sticks for Barca in 2025, after coming out of retirement to join the club following the setback suffered by Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
Ter Stegen sustained an awful knee injury earlier this season, missing several months of action, but the German is now available for selection once more, taking his place on the bench for the Copa del Rey final success against Real Madrid at the weekend.
That has led many to believe that Flick could reinstate his fellow countryman to the starting XI ahead of their crucial two-legged showdown with the Italian champions, which gets underway on Wednesday.
Ahead of the match, speaking in his pre-match press conference, Flick was asked about the potential selection dilemma, but the Barca manager has already made his mind up about who will start in Montjuic, as well as at San Siro.
© Imago
Flick to stick with Szczesny
Flick will stay loyal to Szczesny, who abruptly halted his retirement to help the club out in their time of need, with the Polish stopper set to remain in goal against Inter.
Answering that query in the press conference, Flick announced: "Szczesny will play in the Champions League. It's decided."
Szczesny has overcome some difficult evenings to become a really important player for Barca in their quest for the treble, having a huge hand in their success over Borussia Dortmund in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, despite conceding a second-leg penalty.
The 35-year-old was also excellent away to Benfica, when Barca played the majority of the match with 10 men in the last 16, making amends for a disappointing performance at the Estadio Da Luz in the league phase, when Flick's men won 5-4.
Szczesny is only contracted until the summer, when he is expected to depart and resume his retirement, but one thing is for certain and that is he has the full backing of Flick to offer a helping hand in delivering Barca the treble.
© Imago
Ter Stegen to play second fiddle to Szczesny
Ter Stegen only played in Barca's first seven games of the season, but he is still set to get some game time before the campaign is out.
Following up his earlier announcement, Flick said: "Ter Stegen? We will see about La Liga rotations."
That means that Ter Stegen could make his return to first-team action when Barca face already-relegated Real Valladolid at the weekend, in between the two legs against Inter.
After the second leg against the Nerazzurri, Barca are in El Clasico action again with their home clash against Real Madrid, where no rotation is expected.
However, just a few days after that, the derby with Espanyol will take place, and could provide another opportunity for Ter Stegen, when the title could be clinched with a win, if all goes well in the meantime.
Andrew Delaney
