Szczesny’s former coach opines on when he’ll be fully fit to play for Barcelona | OneFootball

FC Barcelona are quite close to completing the signing of the Polish goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny, who is going to be the replacement in the squad for the injured Marc-Andre Ter Stegen.

In fact, the former Juventus shot-stopper has already been in the city of Barcelona and undergone his medical examination with the Blaugrana club, which is usually one of the last steps in the completion of any transfer.

Although the Catalans have not yet officially announced his signing, he is still expected to join the team in the next few days. However, he is not expected to be in shape to play right after his signing as he has not played competitively since his retirement after the UEFA EURO 2024.

An idea of how long the Polish goalie would need to step on the pitch was provided by one of his former coaches Jacek Rutkowski. As Mundo Deportivo has reported, the trainer was Szczesny’s first coach at Agrykola Warszawa, and speaking to a Polish outlet claimed that the former Arsenal keeper would have to do some work before being able to defend the goal for the Catalan team:

“Although 34 years old is not much for a goalkeeper, Wojciech will definitely need three or four weeks of training to get back to his pre-retirement condition. The muscles and tendons were used to exercising over the years and functioned differently when he wasn’t doing anything.”

“He needs to restore them to their ‘factory settings.’ One thing I’m sure of: Wojciech won’t be on the field unless he’s confident he’s ready. He’s returning to reinforce and defend Barça for a few matches. Surely, he won’t allow himself to step onto the pitch unless he’s 100% convinced of his performance.”

Rutkowski went on to share that he already believed Szczesny would come out of his retirement when he announced it at the end of the last season:

“I expected Wojciech wouldn’t last long without the ball. After some time, he would miss the adrenaline, the locker room, and high-stakes matches, and he would come back. In reality, it happened very quickly, but tell me one player who would turn down an offer from Barcelona?”

“Wojciech probably thought he would end his career at Juventus. Now that Barça approached him, it’s no surprise he was tempted. Besides, Barcelona is more than just a club. It’s a legend, magic, a way of life.”

The trainer’s words make sense, as Szczesny has not been playing competitively for quite some time now, and would need some time to get back to his best level. Meanwhile, Inaki Pena will get the chance to showcase his own talents between the sticks, and thus give the Pole a run of his money to become the starting goalkeeper at Barcelona.