DFB goalkeeper
Ter Stegen needs surgery because of back pain
National team goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen needs surgery. photo
© Gerard Franco/Zuma Press/dpa
Marc-André ter Stegen has had back problems for a few weeks. Now it’s clear: the goalkeeper has to have surgery this week. This can have an impact on the EM.
National goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen has to undergo surgery this week due to persistent back problems. FC Barcelona announced this on its website.
Ter Stegen will undergo surgery “to solve his lumbar spine problems. A new medical bulletin will be published after the procedure,” the club wrote. It was not announced exactly when the operation would be carried out or how long Ter Stegen might be out.
The 31-year-old is now threatening to be out for a longer period in the duel with Manuel Neuer for the position in goal for the German national soccer team. Ter Stegen wrote on X that the decision came after “intensive discussions with the club’s medical team and various supporting experts.” “The interruption obviously annoys me,” said the keeper. But it was “the right and safe decision to come back with the best conditions for my club and the national team,” he added.
Ter Stegen had already missed the DFB team’s two test matches against Turkey (2:3) and in Austria (0:2) due to back problems and also had to watch Barça’s three following games. The keeper had been in goal for the national team in eight of nine international matches this year until his November loss. Due to his good performances in the DFB team and with the Spanish champions, he was considered number one and the designated goalkeeper for the European Championships next summer in the absence of Neuer after his broken leg.