Official: Barcelona sign Wojciech Szczesny until the end of the season

Following the long-term injury to Marc-Andre ter Stegen, FC Barcelona have officially confirmed that they have signed former Juventus and Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny as an emergency replacement.

“FC Barcelona and Wojciech Szczęsny have reached an agreement for the goalkeeper to join the Club until 30 June 2025,” the statement from the club read.

Szczesny, 34, had announced his retirement in August after terminating his contract with Juventus where he had one more year left on his deal.

The Polish shot-stopper spent seven years with the Bianconeri and made over 250 appearances for them before calling time on his career.

Prior to joining Juventus, Szczesny spent the majority of his career at Arsenal, whom he joined as a 16-year-old, while he also had loan stints at Brentford and AS Roma.

Szczęsny ja és culer! 💙❤️ pic.twitter.com/6JakhvCN3b

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona_cat) October 2, 2024

Szczesny arrives at Barcelona on a short-term contract that will run only until the end of the season.

An agreement was finalised last week and the ex-Arsenal star arrived in Catalonia on Monday to complete his medicals before he signed his contract today.

The 34-year-old’s salary is understood to be much lower than what he used to earn at Juventus.

The veteran Pole will compete with Inaki Pena for the starting berth in the Blaugrana goal, with the aim being to ensure that Ter Stegen’s absence is not felt.

An official presentation for Szczesny is likely to be held later this week. As for his debut, it is likely to take some weeks at least for the 34-year-old to get ready.