OFFICIAL: Wojciech Szczesny joins Barcelona on a free transfer
Wojciech Szczesny has officially joined Barcelona on a free transfer, on a one-year contract.
Szczesny signed his contract with Barcelona on Wednesday and the Blaugrana have now officially announced the signing.
President 🤝 Szczęsny pic.twitter.com/u1QoQLg6W0
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) October 2, 2024
Szczesny underwent a successful medical on Monday and watched Barcelona’s Champions League game against Young Boys on Tuesday at Camp Nou.
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The 34-year-old Szczesny came out of retirement to join Barcelona to sign a deal until June 2025.
Szczesny to replace Ter Stegen
Barcelona moved for Szczesny to replace starting goalkeeper Marc-Andre Ter Stegen after he suffered a season-ending injury against Villarreal last month.
Although the transfer window is closed, Barcelona have been able to sign Szczesny as he was a free agent. He will be Barcelona’s first-choice goalkeeper for the season until Ter Stegen returns.
Szczesny retired from football this summer after he was told by Juventus that he was no longer part of their plans.
His contract at Juve was initially set to expire in 2025 but the Bianconeri signed Michele Di Gregorio from Monza and then put Szczesny up for sale.
Szczesny then opted to retire instead of moving elsewhere but he was soon tempted out of retirement by Barcelona.
The Pole still plans to retire at the end of the 2024-25 season once his one-year Barcelona contract ends.
Szczesny has enjoyed a glittering career, most notably at Juventus where he played 252 times over seven seasons and won three Scudetti.
He also previously starred for Roma, Arsenal and Brentford.
Szczesny won 84 caps for Poland before retiring from international football after Euro 2024.