Barcelona appoint new captain following Marc-Andre ter Stegen exit

Last week, Barcelona finalised the loan exit of Marc-Andre ter Stegen, who has joined Girona for the rest of the season. The 33-year-old chose to move after being told he would not be counted on at the Spotify Camp Nou, as Hansi Flick is proceeding with Joan Garcia and Wojciech Szczesny as his first team goalkeepers.

The departure of ter Stegen left Barcelona without a club captain, a position that the Germany international had held since August 2024 after replacing Sergi Roberto – he has been stripped of the captaincy last summer when he refused to allow the Catalans to use his salary towards registering Joan Garcia, but was reinstated a day later.

He will take it back when he returns after his Girona loan spell, but for the time being, Barcelona have a new club captain: Ronald Araujo. As per Cadena SER, the Uruguayan defender has officially been appointed to the role, with Frenkie de Jong, Pedri and Raphinha making up the rest of the captaincy team.

Eric Garcia and Ferran Torres set for increased roles

In the event that none of the four aforementioned players are on the pitch at any one time, one of Eric Garcia or Ferran Torres would take the armband, the report has revealed. Flick recently spoke on the leadership qualities of the former, so it would be no surprise if he had a say in the decision.

Barcelona will need a lot of leadership during the second half of the season, as they seek another positive campaign. They are currently a point ahead of Real Madrid in La Liga, while they also have aspirations to retain the Copa del Rey title they won last May. On top of this, they hope to end their 11-year wait to win the Champions League.

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