Joan Laporta labels 5-1 Barcelona win over Villarreal a ‘sad victory’

It almost feels like a curse that Barcelona are not allowed to enjoy their victories so far this season. Every time the team comes up with an impressive performance, there is an injury cloud that takes the happiness out of the win.

After Barcelona’s 2-1 remontada against Rayo Vallecano, all everyone could think about was Marc Bernal’s injury. To a lesser extent, after the 4-1 win over Girona, it was Dani Olmo’s injury that played in everyone’s mind.

Similarly, after the 5-1 win over Villarreal last night at Estadi de la Ceràmica, the serious injury suffered by club captain Marc-Andre Ter Stegen played in everyone’s mind. The German shot-stopper had to be stretchered off just before half-time.

Post-game, club president Joan Laporta appeared affected, speaking to the media, as quoted by SPORT. Here is what he had to say about the victory: “A sad victory. It seems to be going that way.”

Laporta was hinting at the injury to Ter Stegen, who is feared to have torn his patellar tendon which almost rules him out for the rest of the season. The medical tests are still pending but it does not look optimistic.

In the absence of their club captain, Hansi Flick needs to make a decision on how he wants to take the team forward. The most obvious option would be to trust Inaki Pena who is the reserve shot-stopper and hope for him to come good.

Alternatively, Barcelona could look to use Article 77 to bring in a shot-stopper from the market who is a free agent and use him to replace Ter Stegen for the season ahead. Flick needs to make a decision the same soon.

Pena came on last night and despite not being prepared for the occasion, he produced a solid performance, even making a quality save. It remains to be seen if the 25-year-old La Masia graduate can make a case for Hansi Flick to trust him in the games to come.