After weeks of uncertainty surrounding his registration, Barcelona finally managed to include Joan Garcia in their squad for the La Liga opener against Mallorca. The 24-year-old goalkeeper not only f...
After weeks of uncertainty surrounding his registration, Barcelona finally managed to include Joan Garcia in their squad for the La Liga opener against Mallorca.
The 24-year-old goalkeeper not only featured but also delivered a debut performance that has already secured him a special place in the club’s history.
It is to be noted that there was a moment of concern in the warm-up when Garcia seemed to pick up a knock, but he brushed it off and went on to show exactly why Barça fought hard to register him in time.
His commanding presence between the posts helped the team secure a vital three points away from home.
More importantly, Garcia kept a clean sheet, a rare achievement for any debutant goalkeeper in Barcelona colours.
A rare feat in Barcelona’s goalkeeping history
According to SPORT, since the start of the 21st century, 17 different goalkeepers have made their La Liga debut as starters for Barcelona.
Joan Garcia is already in Barcelona’s history books. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)
However, only eight of them managed to win their first match, a list that now includes Garcia. The others are Ronerto Bonano, Richard Dutruel, Pepe Reina, Rustu Recber, Claudio Bravo, Marc-Andre ter Stegen, and Wojciech Szczęsny.
Of the remaining debutants, five settled for a draw in their first outing – Victor Valdes, Albert Jorquera, Ruben Martinez, Jordi Masip and Neto – while four suffered defeat, namely Pinto, Oier Olazabal, Jasper Cillessen and Inaki Pena.
What makes Garcia’s performance even more remarkable is that, among the eight who won, only two goalkeepers managed to keep a clean sheet, namely, Claudio Bravo and Garcia himself.
Adding to the coincidence, both achieved this by the same margin of victory. Garcia oversaw Barça’s 3-0 win at Mallorca, while Bravo achieved the exact scoreline in a home victory over Elche at Camp Nou.
With composure, sharp reflexes and a debut clean sheet to his name, Garcia has already shown qualities that suggest he can grow into a reliable figure in goal under Hansi Flick’s management.
Category: General Sports
