Barcelona goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny signs new two-year deal

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Veteran goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny has signed a new two-year contract with Barcelona, the LaLiga champions announced on Monday.

The former Poland international's deal expired at the end of last month, but he has now signed new terms to prolong his stay at Spotify Camp Nou until 2027.

Szczęsny, 35, came out of retirement last October to help Barça win a domestic treble last season after long-term No. 1 Marc-André ter Stegen got injured.

He revealed in May he had received an offer to renew with Barça, but said he needed time to discuss the decision with his family.

ESPN revealed last week that he had decided to accept the proposal.

Barça now have four first-team goalkeepers on the books ahead of the new season, meaning there will have to be departures before the campaign starts.

In addition to Szczęsny, Ter Stegen is fit again, academy graduate Iñaki Peña is still at the club and Joan García has signed from local rivals Espanyol in a €25 million ($29.2m) deal.

Sources have told ESPN that Peña is open to leaving this summer, while the club will also listen to offers for Ter Stegen, who has said he wants to stay put.

Szczęsny initially joined Barça on a short-term deal at the end of last year after Ter Stegen was injured in a LaLiga game against Villarreal.

After taking No. 2 stopper Peña's place in the team, he went on to make 30 appearances under Hansi Flick, helping Barça win LaLiga, the Copa del Rey and the Spanish Supercopa.

During that time, he became a fans' favourite, in part due to his sense of humour and his honesty about most issues, including the fact he is a smoker. However, while he has made light of smoking at times, he also told ESPN that he would urge others not to follow his lead.

He started his professional career at Arsenal, going on to have loan spells with Brentford and Roma before signing for Juventus in 2017.

After seven years with the Italian giants, he announced his retirement from football in 2024, reversing his decision when Barça called last October.