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BARCELONA: Barcelona coach Hansi Flick said Saturday he has faith in veteran goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny after first choice stopper Joan Garcia suffered a knee injury.
Garcia will have surgery because of a meniscus injury and will miss between between four and six weeks, including Wednesday’s Champions League clash against Paris Saint-Germain.
Garcia was hurt at the end of Thursday’s win at Real Oviedo which left the champions two points behind La Liga leaders Real Madrid.
“It’s not good to not have Joan because he did a fantastic job. It was the last situation in the match against Oviedo. It happens,” Flick told a news conference ahead of Barca’s game against Real Sociedad on Sunday.
“Now Tek (Szczesny) is back. And when you see the last season, the second part, we won almost every match. We won three trophies with him.
“He is a fantastic goalkeeper and a fantastic person. I have no doubts about that.”
Szczesny, 35, came out of retirement to sign for Barcelona last season when Marc-Andre ter Stegen suffered a knee injury.
The Polish goalkeeper established himself as first choice and helped Barcelona win a domestic treble of La Liga, the Copa del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup.
Flick also confirmed teenage winger Lamine Yamal would return to action after a groin injury.
“Whenever he’s on the bench or in the team, like tomorrow, he will have some minutes of course,” said the coach.
“Everyone is convinced that it’s the right moment to come back. We are happy we have him as an option for the match tomorrow.”

LONDON: West Ham sacked Graham Potter on Saturday after only nine months in charge, with former Nottingham Forest boss Nuno Espirito Santo tipped to take over the troubled Premier League club.
Potter’s exit was widely expected after the Hammers slumped to second bottom of the table ahead of Monday’s trip to Everton.
Nuno is expected to replace Potter in time for the clash with Everton after reports the Portuguese coach has had positive talks with the West Ham board.
Potter managed just three points from West Ham’s five league matches this season, while they also crashed out of the League Cup against Wolves.
The former Chelsea and Brighton manager only took the reins at the London Stadium in January, with last season’s disappointing 14th place finish putting pressure on him to hit the ground running this season.

Last weekend’s home defeat against Crystal Palace proved the final straw.
Potter, who lost five of West Ham’s six games this season, was relieved of his duties less than 24 hours after holding his usual pre-match press conference on Friday.
“Results and performances over the course of the second half of last season and the start of the 2025/26 season have not matched expectations,” West Ham said in a statement.
“The board of directors believe that a change is necessary in order to help improve the team’s position in the Premier League as soon as possible.”
Former Tottenham and Wolves boss Nuno was sacked by Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis three weeks ago after the pair fell out over the club’s transfer policy.
Nuno earned praise for lifting Forest into European competition for the first time in 30 years last season via a seventh-place finish in the Premier League.
He also impressed at Wolves, helping establish them in the top-flight before leaving for a turbulent 17-match spell at Tottenham that ended in the sack.

- Potter ‘ridiculed’ -

Potter won only six of his 25 West Ham matches after replacing Julen Lopetegui, who lasted just 22 matches after taking over from David Moyes, who is now in charge of Everton.
Despite Potter’s substantial spending on eight new signings in the summer transfer window, West Ham made a woeful start to the season.
A 3-0 win at Nottingham Forest last month provided some respite, but West Ham went down by the same score to Tottenham after the international break before the Palace loss heralded the end of his dismal spell in charge
Potter, who lasted less than seven months before being axed as Chelsea boss in 2023, admitted the Palace loss was a “tough moment” as he and his team were booed off at the final whistle.
The 50-year-old’s struggles made him a viral trend on social media, with people using AI technology to swap his face on to other celebrities, including Barbie, Donald Trump and the Chuckle Brothers.
Speaking on Friday, Potter said he had not been taking it too seriously.
“It made my 15-year-old son laugh a lot so you have to accept what comes with it,” he said.
“At times it’s ridicule but that is just the environment we are in. It is what it is.”
West Ham confirmed that assistant coach Bruno Saltor, first team coaches Billy Reid and Narcis Pelach, lead goalkeeper coach Casper Ankergren, and goalkeeper coach Linus Kandolin have also left with immediate effect.
“The process of appointing a replacement is underway. The club will be making no further comment at this time,” the club statement added.