German footballing legend Markus Babbel has publicly spoken out about how Barcelona have treated Marc-André ter Stegen, and sharply criticised the top Spanish club.
"I was actually a die-hard fan of FC Barcelona since I was a kid. But the club is becoming more and more unappealing to me now; the situation couldn't be worse," the former German international fumed.
After signing Juan García and Wojciech Szczęsny, Barcelona demoted ter Stegen to third-choice goalkeeper. "Their attitude towards ter Stegen is simply appalling. Unfortunately, they've sent players away many times in the past, even though those players made incredible contributions to the club," Babbel explained.
He drew a shocking conclusion: “They are treated like cattle. That's why I can't understand any player voluntarily joining Barça. In my view, the way the club treats its employees is a huge scandal.”
Ter Stegen has been with Barcelona since 2014 and has even been promoted to captain. Despite his difficult situation, the 33-year-old has repeatedly stated recently that he does not want to leave the club.
From Babbel's perspective, however, ter Stegen must transfer in time if he does not want to jeopardise his place in the starting line-up for the 2026 World Cup. "He's clearly in a tough spot. He doesn't want to leave, but he has to – because without playing time, he won't be able to make it to the World Cup. It's somewhat in line with his national team career, though. So he has to decide: take a big salary without playing, or go to another club as their first-choice goalkeeper."
