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Flick decides to bet on Barcelona veteran over academy graduate who goes against staff member’s advice

The goalkeeper debate in Barcelona was officially settled this Sunday: Hansi Flick chose Wojciech Szczesny over Inki Pena in the La Liga match against Valencia, signaling a clear change in the philosophy behind the posts.

As of 2025, it seemed that Flick had opted to use Pena in the league, while the veteran Polish goalkeeper had been used in other tournaments. But, on Sunday it was Szczesny who received the approval on the The Masia graduate.

Appear in a movie in Szczesny about Pena

Now, according to AS, the decision to go with Szczesny before Pena was made by Flick himself.

In fact, goalkeeper coach José Ramón de la Fuente was more inclined to keep Pena as a La Liga starter. However, the German tactician opted to move forward with Szczesny, who has won every game he has played.

Flick has made his decision on the goalkeeping situation. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

A few minutes before the match, the Barça coach explained that one of the reasons he chose Szczesny was because he had “won” every game so far.

It is worth remembering that Szczesny made his debut in the Copa del Rey against Barbastro (0-4) at the beginning of 2025.

Then came the Spanish Super Cup, where Pena was originally going to start, but an incident, arriving late to training, kept him out of the semi-finals against Athletic Club (0-2) and the final against Real Madrid (2-5), where Pena ended up playing after Szczesny’s red card.

In the Copa del Rey match vs. Betis (5-1), Pena took over due to Szczesny’s suspension, and started once again against Getafe (1-1) in La Liga.

However, it was against Benfica in Lisbon (4-5) when Flick began to reveal his plans, opting once again for Szczesny. Despite two glaring errors that led to goals, he redeemed himself with a crucial save against Angel Di María in the dying moments.

But it wasn’t until this Sunday that the goalkeeper change became official, with Szczesny starting in La Liga before Pena, with the veteran now seemingly the first choice between the sticks.

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