Barcelona star will renew until 2029 before loan exit; surprise La Liga club best placed to sign him | OneFootball

It has been well-established for quite some time now that Inaki Pena will leave FC Barcelona this summer after having fallen down the pecking order at the club.

However, the delayed registration of Wojciech Szczesny has proven to be an impediment in offloading the 26-year-old goalkeeper, whose contract expires in 2026.

Initially, the plan was to let the La Masia graduate leave for free by handing him a letter of freedom. Since then, though, Barcelona have changed their plans drastically.

Indeed, Pena will instead renew his contract with Barça and then leave the club on loan.

Renewal until 2029 before Pena joins Elche

Building on that, journalist Juli Claramunt on Jijantes reports that Pena will sign a new three-year extension, until the summer of 2029, before leaving Barcelona on loan for the season.

Pena headed to Elche? (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

It had previously been reported that the goalkeeper could renew for two additional years before leaving, with Como being touted as his next destination.

But, as per the aforementioned update, Pena will be renewing for three additional years on top of his current deal, which expires in 2026.

Moreover, La Liga club Elche are now seen as the best-placed club to sign the 26-year-old Spaniard on loan for the season.

It comes as a surprise development considering that Elche were not linked with a move for Pena thus far, with the major interest coming from teams like Celta Vigo, Girona, and Como.

However, the newly-promoted La Liga outfit are now seen as the best positioned to sign Pena on a temporary basis.