Official: Ex-Juventus goalkeeper Szczesny comes out of retirement to join Barcelona

Former Juventus goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny has officially joined Barcelona as a free agent, despite announcing his retirement at the end of his contract this summer.

The ex-Poland international, who has previously represented Arsenal, Roma and Juve, agreed to terminate his contract with the Bianconeri in the summer, despite having another year remaining on his deal.

Juventus had brought in Michele Di Gregorio from Monza in the summer, and also have Mattia Perin among their ranks, so Szczesny’s opportunities in the first team looked practically over after the appointment of Thiago Motta.

The 34-year-old then announced that he hagd come to a mutual agreement to terminate his deal with Juventus, and then went on to confirm his retirement just before the end of the summer transfer window.

He even recently had a guard of honour at the Allianz Stadium as Juventus fans bid him farewell after seven seasons in Turin. He made 252 competitive appearances during that spell.

Szczesny joins Barcelona following the long-term injury to club captain Marc Andre ter Stegen and has put pen to paper on a short-term deal until the end of the 2024-25 season.

Official: Szczesny joins Barcelona

“The Polish keeper comes to the Club in unusual circumstances but there is no doubt that his CV speaks for itself,” Barcelona wrote in a statement on the club website.

“During his career, which appeared to have come to an end in the summer, he has played at top clubs such as Arsenal, Roma and Juventus since leaving his home town of Warsaw at the age of 16.”

The move is also set to benefit Juventus, as they will no longer have to continue paying Szczesny’s salary, which could save them around €2m over the course of the 2024-25 season.