After being chosen by Hansi Flick to protect the FC Barcelona goal against Sevilla and Bayern Munich, Iñaki Peña arrived at the Santiago Bernabéu to face the ultimate 'trial by fire', and he managed to pass with flying colours. With the shadow of Szczesny behind him, the Alicante native stepped up and dressed as a 'saviour' on several occasions, being largely responsible for the Catalans' fifth clean sheet this season.
The goalkeeper put in an excellent performance, and Kylian Mbappé will surely have nightmares about him. The Barça '13' made some outstanding saves, including two one-on-one saves in which he prevented the '9' from scoring. In addition, he knew how to choose the best option at all times and did not hesitate to act as a 'sweeper' in the Catalans' advanced defensive line when the occasion required it.
A spectacular performance in the best possible setting, thus vindicating his figure in the face of the doubts that existed after the arrival of Szczesny, which opened the debate in the Blaugrana goal. Despite this, Peña's performance in Barça's brutal week seems to have put an end to the questions about his starting position in goal, making it clear that he is fully capable of protecting the Barça goal during Ter Stegen's absence.
Peña, euphoric after Barça's victory
At the end of the match, a 'euphoric' Peña spoke to the press and gave his feelings after the 'thrashing' of Madrid. "The team is doing spectacular work, we played 48 hours ago... We scored four goals and in the second half, which was when we could falter... In the end, we are a group of 23-24 who are feeling like a team. I am very happy," he said, later speaking about his relationship with Szczesny.
"From the first day, Szczesny showed me a respect that I perhaps didn't deserve... But as a person he's spectacular, he always helped me. We're a team, we work a lot together"
"In the first half we were a bit out of control, with too much direct play, but when Frenkie came on we found Madrid's back. In the end I'm not making any claims, I want to play as much as possible in the best way possible. I pushed myself like no one else to be able to be good, and even if you win everything looks much better," concluded the goalkeeper.