El Clasico Countdown: Barca's Goalkeeper Crisis and a Race Against Time
8 October 2025
Injury Update and Timetable
A Spanish sports daily reported on Wednesday the latest on Barcelona goalkeeper Juan Garcia and his chances of featuring in the El Clasico against Real Madrid.
Barcelona travel to Real Madrid on October 26, to play at the Santiago Bernabéu in La Liga's round 10.
According to AS, Barca faces a setback and Garcia is unlikely to be fully fit for the match.
The Blaugrana have been hit by a string of injuries in recent weeks, with Garcia, Raphinha, Lamine Yamal, Pablo Gavi, and Fermín López among the key concerns.
There is cautious optimism that Yamal, Raphinha and Fermín Lopez could return after the international break and be ready for Clasico.
Garcia, 24, underwent arthroscopic knee surgery on the left knee at the end of September.
While the operation was successful, Barca's medical team say the recovery will take four to six weeks depending on progress.
The club activated the 25 million euro buyout clause for Garcia in June, after he moved from Espanyol, signing for six seasons through 2031.
The goalkeeper began in Espanyol's youth system and rose to the first team, earning a move to Barca thereafter.
He became a staple for Espanyol's youth national teams and helped the club reach the top levels, later winning Olympic gold in Paris 2024; although not yet called to the senior Spain squad, his trajectory hints at a future call-up.
He debuted with Espanyol's first team in late 2021 but truly broke through in 2023-24, playing a pivotal role as the club remained in La Liga and producing standout numbers, including a high saves tally and strong shot-stopping metrics.
Thanks to his form and age, he attracted attention from top clubs, and Barca's sporting director Deco secured the deal.
Veteran keeper Wojciech Szczesny has praised Garcia as a potential future world-class goalkeeper and expressed pride in working with him.
In Warsaw for the premiere of a documentary about his career, Szczesny said Garcia has the qualities to become the world's best someday.
This period offers Garcia a rare chance to prove himself at Camp Nou, though his teammate is not seen as a rival but as a project for the future.
He noted his rise through Espanyol last season, but his real impression came after watching him in Barcelona training sessions.
"I admired him at Espanyol, but he surprised me after just three days of joint training; he has great composure and exceptional ball control, and with a bit more experience it will be very hard to surpass him," Szczesny said in quotes translated from Spanish media.
He added: "I'm not saying he's the best yet, but he is certainly on the right path to becoming so. I would be happy to help him, even if only with a bit of experience."
Although the move to Barca wasn't originally meant to place him as the starter, Garcia's injury opened the door for Chesney to showcase his value and emerge as a leader for the squad both on and off the pitch.
With Szczesny's support, Barcelona now appears to boast a two-man goalkeeping unit of exceptional quality: a seasoned veteran and a promising young keeper ready to write his own chapter in the Blaugrana history.
Punchline time: If injuries had a dating profile, Barca’s defense would say “seeking a fortress”—and the matches would be hilarious only to the physio. Punchline two: Clasico diplomacy aside, this tale proves even a goalie can have cliffhanger chapters that deserve popcorn.
