By Irom Daniel
Barcelona have officially reinstated Marc-André ter Stegen as the club’s first-team captain, after resolving a dispute related to his fitness.
It would be recalled that the Catalan side stripped the German of the captaincy over a dispute concerning his injury.
The German goalkeeper was initially appointed captain last summer following the departure of long-time skipper Sergio Busquets.
However, a mid-season knee injury that required surgery sidelined him for several months, forcing Barça to hand the captaincy to defender Ronald Araújo on an interim basis.
Earlier in the week, the club began disciplinary action against Ter Stegen and removed him from the captaincy.
This came after a disagreement about his medical status following back surgery in July.
Reports said the 33-year-old goalkeeper had refused to release his full medical details, which caused tension between him and the club.
Stegen has signed the necessary authorization for the club’s medical team to submit his updated medical report to LaLiga, clearing him for competitive action ahead of the new season.
However, on Friday night, the club released a statement confirming that Ter Stegen had signed the necessary documents. “The disciplinary case is now closed, and he regains the first-team captaincy with immediate effect,” the statement said.
Earlier that day, Ter Stegen defended himself in a post on Instagram.
“Many things have been said about me recently—some are completely untrue,” he wrote.
Since joining from Borussia Mönchengladbach in 2014, Stegen has made over 400 appearances for Barcelona, winning six La Liga titles, Copa del Rey trophies, and the 2015 UEFA Champions League.
