Barca hit with injury blow as Ter Stegen is ruled out for months

After being taken off a stretcher during Sunday’s 5-1 La Liga victory against Villarreal, Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen will be sidelined for months due to a knee injury, an ESPN source stated.

The injury looks to be “huge and serious,” according to Barça coach Hansi Flick, who added that he was unable to provide a timeline until the player underwent additional testing.

“It doesn’t look good for Marc,” Flick told Spanish television after the game. “We have to wait to know the full diagnosis of the injury, but it’s true it does appear to be really serious.”

At the end of the first half, Ter Stegen, 32, went down after winning a corner, and it was obvious he would not be able to continue. Iñaki Peña took his position.

The German international’s injury marred an otherwise successful day for Barça, who won five of their six La Liga games this season and are still four points ahead of the competition.

“This injury makes us sad,” Flick said in a news conference. “When you win 5-1 at Villarreal, the fans here in the stadium, also those watching on television, saw a fantastic match.

“Also from Villarreal, [they played with] unbelievable speed and were dynamic in the match. With great goals from us, we are very happy with the 5-1, but at the end we are sad because I think the injury will be huge, but we have to wait for information.”

At Barça, Ter Stegen is the latest addition to a long list of injured players, which also includes Ronald Araújo, Andreas Christensen, Marc Bernal, Frenkie de Jong, Gavi, Fermín López, and Dani Olmo.

Despite this, Barça lead La Liga. Flick has once again trusted the youth of Villarreal, starting Sergi Domínguez and Pablo Torre in their season debuts. Gerard Martín has also entered the team at left back.

“At the end, the team has good character,” Flick said of Barça’s ability to overcome setbacks this season.

“I would say the attitude is unbelievably good. I love it, every day, the mixture between very focused and also enjoying playing football. This is what we like.

“We have to accept [the injuries]. Marc today, it was an accident. It’s really tough, but we have enough players. I am really proud of the team and how they played. Everyone who came in did fantastic. It was a big win for us.”