Marc-Andre ter Stegen offers update on Barcelona return | OneFootball

Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen says he is hoping to return to fitness before the end of the season in his first public comments since suffering a severe knee injury.

The German shot-stopper has been sidelined since September with a ruptured patella tendon sustained during Barcelona's 5-1 win over Villarreal. Ter Stegen had to be stretchered off and underwent surgery which many believed would rule him out of the remainder of the season.

The Catalan giants were so concerned with Ter Stegen's prolonged absence that they ushered veteran goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny out of retirement. After playing second fiddle to academy graduate Inaki Pena for the first half of the season, the 34-year-old has been promoted to the club's number one by Hansi Flick.

However, Barcelona would still benefit from Ter Stegen's return - which could be sooner than expected. Cornered by journalists at the club's Sports Tomorrow Congress earlier this week, the injured goalkeeper was asked whether he would feature again this season. "We'll see," Ter Stegen offered. "I'm working on it."

Flick revealed in February that his number one had made a major step forward in his recover. "He started training on the grass with the goalkeeping coach, it's the first step," the manager outlined. "We're happy, he's recovered a lot, he's on the right track."

Even if Ter Stegen returns to full fitness, Barcelona are preparing for a future without the 32-year-old. Espanyol's starlet Joan Garcia is on the club's shortlist of long-term options between the posts.

Unfortunately for Barcelona, Arsenal and Manchester United are also interested in the 23-year-old.

Garcia recorded the best save percentage of any goalkeeper in the Spanish second division while helping Espanyol win promotion last season and has continued to impress during his first full season of top-flight football. Getafe's David Soria is the only La Liga goalkeeper with a better record than Garcia when comparing the actual number of goals conceded with the tally he is expected to have let fly past him.