Ter Stegen talks Gundogan, Barcelona captaincy, contract talks, Montjuic, Mbappe

Barcelona captain Marc-Andre ter Stegen has said that he is absolutely enjoying his life at the club, adding that personally, he is at a very good moment in his career.

The 30-year-old German, who has been at Barcelona since 2014, spoke at length on various aspects, including his take on the Blaugrana’s captain choices, Ilkay Gundogan’s impact, his contractual situation and even on Kylian Mbappe’s reported move to Real Madrid.

Starting off, the stopper was quoted by SPORT as saying,  “I’m in a very good moment in my career. I’m balanced, both in a personal and professional sense. I enjoy myself on the pitch.”

Barcelona have been extremely unfortunate in the UEFA Champions League in the past few years. For the last two seasons, the team from Catalonia has faced elimination from the group stage itself. In fact, the last time they got near the final was in the 2018-19 season when they managed to reach the semi-final round.

While speaking about their chances in the competition next season, the goalkeeper said, “Our goal is to go way farther in the Champions League. We did well in La Liga, and even in some Champions League matches, but it got harder for us. We want to go far, but we have to go step by step, it’s the best formula.”

“It’s been happening for some years now. We have chances to go far in the Champions League and we fail to do so. Now it’s a different situation. We have a very young team and we did very well in La Liga last season,” he said.

The 31-year-old added, “We really deserved to win the league [last season].”

This year, Barcelona will look to get over the ghosts of the past by trying to go as far as they can and ter Stegen is of the idea that the squad is perfectly built for the task.

“For the Champions League, we have a very competitive squad now. If things go our way, it would be a great impulse. We saw it with Inter. With luck, you can get to the Champions League final. For now, we’ll focus on growing step by step and doing our best.”

Ter Stegen is among the four captains that will lead Barcelona in the 2023-24 season. While the stopper and Sergi Roberto have been retained for the role, Ronald Araujo and Frenkie de Jong are the new appointees. When asked about the new captains, he said:

“The captains chosen were meant to be. Independently of whom I voted for, the team voted for them. That means they’re respected players with a certain standing. They will do a great job and we’ll try to make everything smooth and happy.”

It seems Gundogan has made quite an impact in the dressing room and even ter Stegen is happy that Barcelona have made his signing possible.

“I’ve known Gündogan for a couple of years now, and I’ve been trying to help him with everything that he needs to fit right into the team. Knowing Pep Guardiola, he will be able to adapt easily.

“Gündogan and I spoke a few times before he joined Barça. I always told him to look at this club as a new challenge, a new experience. He had to make that decision for himself, but I’m glad he accepted the challenge,” he explained.

Ter Stegen’s current Barcelona contract runs until 2025 and when asked about his future, he said, “I don’t speak on contractual issues. We’re in conversations with the club. I know what they want and they know what I want. What happens, will happen.”

Barcelona will be playing their home games at Estadi Olímpic Lluis Companys in Montjuic next season and he hopes to see the same support as he got at Camp Nou.

“Montjuic will be our home stadium next season. I hope that it shows. We’ll convince the fans to come and fill the stadium with our performances.”

Lastly, when asked about his take on Real Madrid’s possible acquisition of Kylian Mbappe, he said, “I don’t even get involved in the signings that we make, even less in the ones they make. We know that they’re a competitive team and they’ll continue to be one this season.”