Ter Stegen reveals he was close to signing for Manchester City

Today, despite the great level that Wojciech Szczęsny is showing as goalkeeper of FC Barcelona, it is difficult not to imagine the Barcelona fortress defended by a specific name: Marc-André ter Stegen. The German goalkeeper has become the great emblem of the Blaugrana goal, which he arrived at in the 2014-15 season and in which he has accumulated 420 matches played, being the second goalkeeper with the most matches played as a culé, only behind Víctor Valdés (535).

However, Ter Stegen's history could have been totally different, as he was close to leaving FC Barcelona and joining a totally unexpected destination: Manchester City. This was confirmed by the German '1' in an extensive interview granted to the podcast 'Phrasenmäher', where 'MATS' explained, firstly, the reasons why he considered changing clubs in 2016.

The story behind Ter Stegen's possible arrival at Manchester City in 2016

"We came to consider changing clubs. It was a time when I was not happy with the situation at Barça, because although we had won many titles, I had not played in the league (Claudio Bravo did). 25 or 28 games per season in the cup competitions were no longer enough for me. I wanted to be the undisputed number one," he began by saying.

In turn, Ter Stegen revealed how close his signing for the 'citizen' team was to materializing, even holding a meeting with Pep Guardiola, who wanted him for his nascent sports project at Manchester City. "We even had a meeting in Barcelona. Pep flew here and then we met at a friend's house. He explained his ideas to me and told me that he would sign for Manchester City this summer and that he would love to have me. Pep put in a lot of effort. Then I thought about it and told myself that this could be the solution to my problem, and that the plan they have at City seemed very interesting to me," he specified.

"Pep flew here and then we met at a friend's house. He explained his ideas to me and told me that he would sign for Manchester City this summer and that he would love to have me"

But, why didn't 'MATS' end up signing for Manchester City?

However, Ter Stegen also described how he began to encounter obstacles to leaving FC Barcelona, as the club considered him a valuable asset and were not willing to let him go. "At one point, I went to see Luis Enrique and told him that I wanted my release. And he replied: 'I'm not going to release you!' He also said that he would tell the club that they should not let me go under any circumstances. I replied that, on the one hand, I appreciated it very much, but on the other hand, I wanted to be number one. When he said that we should see how the preseason went, I almost lost my temper, but I managed to control myself. I simply said: 'Look, that is my wish now, and I am going to go to the board to let them know,'" 'MATS' related.

"At one point, I went to see Luis Enrique and told him that I wanted my release. And he replied: 'I'm not going to release you!' He also said that he would tell the club that they should not let me go under any circumstances"

Finally, Ter Stegen commented on the key moment in which his situation changed and he ended up giving up the idea of leaving Barça. "The board also said that they would not release me under any circumstances, and then, I think three weeks later, Pep signed my teammate Claudio Bravo to Manchester City. At first it was strange, but in the end I am very happy because I didn't really want to leave and I became number one," he concluded.

Ter Stegen's relationship with Lionel Messi

Beyond this bombshell, Ter Stegen also made a statement that did not leave anyone indifferent, as he spoke about his relationship with the Argentine star Lionel Messi. The German revealed that he had more than one run-in with him, although they also shared good times. "The good or the bad times? [laughs] We had them all. Leo is a special character at this level because he is motivated by many things that we don't see, I think. We have had moments when things didn't work out between us because he was upset with me and I was upset with him," he warned.

"We have had moments when things didn't work out between us because he was upset with me and I was upset with him"

He also told a curious fact about the Blaugrana legend. "I think Leo is probably the only player who, if he wants to shoot you in the face, he can do it. The others would probably shoot anywhere, but he has the ability to hit the target," he pointed out.

Next, Ter Stegen confessed to having been a victim of this situation on more than one occasion, highlighting 'La Pulga's' impressive ability to make his rivals look bad. "Several times (smiles). But not at all angry, in the sense that it didn't last or anything like that. Leo is simply an impressive character on the field, and he plays with a lightness that will never be seen again, I am 100% sure of that. He has the ability; if he wants to make you look bad, he does it so easily, and with a pass or a shot that afterwards you will say: 'That's impossible!'. And I have experienced it many times. And that is why I am also happy to have always had him with me in the games and not on the other side," he said.

"He has the ability; if he wants to make you look bad, he does it so easily, and with a pass or a shot that afterwards you will say: 'That's impossible!'"

To close, the German goalkeeper spoke about how his relationship with Leo Messi ended up being and what it meant for him to share a dressing room with the Argentine legend. "We never argued to the point of saying that we didn't get along at all. But we had our moments, and that's fine. We were together in the dressing room for a long time, and it was certainly interesting to have him on the team and see how he leads. Whether or not it's my style, it was interesting to see. Leo is not a bigmouth; he works a lot with presence and needs to say relatively little, really. And when he says something, everyone listens. And that is what you really want to achieve as a captain: to be listened to and followed," he concluded.