Marc-André ter Stegen has been officially loaned to Ajax, where he will share the dressing room with Josip Šutalo. Meanwhile, Jürgen Klopp begins the reconstruction of the German national team with a 57-player list.
Two significant pieces of news have emerged from the world of German football. While experienced goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen moves to the Netherlands, new head coach Jürgen Klopp has already set his sights on as many as 57 players as part of a major overhaul of Die Mannschaft.
After weeks of speculation, Barcelona and Ajax confirmed on Tuesday, August 4, 2026, that the 34-year-old Marc-André ter Stegen will spend the upcoming season on loan at the Amsterdam club. His contract with the Catalan club runs until 2028, and Barcelona wished him "good luck in this new phase of his career" in an official statement.
Of particular interest to Croatian fans is that Ter Stegen will share the dressing room with Croatian international Josip Šutalo. Ajax's sporting director, Jordi Cruyff, did not hide his enthusiasm for the arrival of a "world-class" goalkeeper, whom he believes will immediately strengthen the squad. Ajax confirmed the loan until the end of the 2026/27 season, but did not specify whether there is an option to make the move permanent.
Ter Stegen joined Barcelona in 2014 from Borussia Mönchengladbach and, in 423 appearances, won the Champions League in 2015 and seven Spanish league titles. However, last season was extremely difficult. In September 2024, he suffered a complete rupture of the patellar tendon in his right knee, which kept him sidelined for nearly eight months. After recovering, he was on loan at Girona from January to June, but due to a hamstring injury, he made very few appearances.
Meanwhile, Joan García, who arrived from Espanyol in the summer of 2025, became Barcelona's first-choice goalkeeper, with Polish goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny serving as backup. Ter Stegen also lost his status as Germany's number one goalkeeper, which he had earned after Euro 2024, and was not called up for the 2026 World Cup, Manuel Neuer returned to the squad. Ajax opens the new season on Sunday at 2:30 PM with an away match against Zwolle.
While Ter Stegen fights to regain form, a new era for the German national team has already begun. According to Bild, new head coach Jürgen Klopp has compiled a broad list of 57 players he will closely monitor. Among them are 10 players who have yet to make their senior debut for Germany, and it is precisely in these players that Klopp sees the potential to refresh the squad.
"I want people to watch the national team and say: 'Wow!'", is reportedly the guiding message of the new coach, as reported by Bild. After disappointing results in the last three World Cups, Klopp has decided that there will be no more privileged spots in the squad, every player will have to earn a call-up through their performances on the pitch.
