For people who do not necessarily follow Spanish football on a daily basis, the name of Joan Garcia probably does not evoke much, if not that of a player who has been incessantly returned to Mercato rumors for months already. Inevitably, many are wondering why Barça forces so much to recruit this goalkeeper who, media at least, is not necessarily one of the most prominent players in this position. For Liga fans, on the other hand, there is no doubt, the porter of the Espanyol is one of the best goalkeepers in the championship and could even claim without too many problems in this first place if there was not a certain Thibaut Courtois in the equation. Therefore, we understand better the obstinacy of FC Barcelona to recruit it.
If Barça Force for Joan Garcia, it is therefore first of all, and without too much surprise, in a sporting logic. The 24-year-old porter brings with him a real sports gains, at a time when Wojciech Szczęsny has not finished the season in best ways, collecting a lot of goals in big games. Behind, Marc-André Ter Stegen, who was no longer too unanimous before his long injury, generates doubts about his physical condition. Clearly, Garcia would come to occupy the place of number 1.
Too beautiful a market opportunity
This season, it was the goalkeeper who has made the most stops in the championship, and his game on the foot is logically a huge asset in his favor. All observers are unanimous on his qualities, and everything indicates that he will also be, in the long term, the porter of the Spanish selection. Above all, Barça is preparing the future. With a fairly young and promising workforce and players called to be references to their post very quickly, Deco and Joan Laporta can turn to the future with optimism. But this was not the case for the goalkeeper position, where the options available had already exceeded thirty. With Joan Garcia, Barça can, if everything is going well, have found his goalkeeper for the next decade.
There is also an obvious financial logic behind all this, since such a guard available for only 25 million euros – the amount of its release clause – is a market opportunity that the club could not let pass. The fact that he is Spanish, born in the region of Barcelona moreover, is also an added value, for its integration into the workforce but also in terms of image and symbol. Clearly, FC Barcelona hopes to have found its new Victor Valdés in Joan Garcia…
