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Manchester United had all but signed current Barcelona goalkeeper Iñaki Peña Sotorres to their academy in 2014.
The Spanish shot stopper has spent his whole career to date at the Catalan club, making 30 appearances for the senior side.
It was last season however where he really came into his own, deputising 17 times for usual first choice keeper Marc-André ter Stegen.
The 25 year old has really been thrown into the spotlight this season as he has been Hansi Flick’s first choice keeper after the horrific injury to Ter Stegen in September and recently impressed with some fine saves in Barcelona’s 4-0 romp over eternal rivals Real Madrid in the Bernabeu last weekend.
Nonetheless, his career could have been all so different back in 2014 according to Catalan paper Mundo Deportivo, as he was on the cusp of joining the Red Devils.
Commenting on the problems la Blaugrana faced in their youth system a decade ago, one “hot potato” that needed to be dealt with was the future of an up and coming goalkeeper in the famed La Masia academy, Peña.
“They had to face the fact that one of the most promising goalkeepers, Iñaki Peña, had practically made his exit,” the outlet explains.
“In an interview with former Barcelona director Jordi Roura, he commented ‘we found ourselves in a mess because he had already signed with Manchester United. He had travelled there and everything. He had it done.”
When all hope seemed lost, the former academy director claimed that they saved the day in the final moments before he made the final trip to become a Manchester United player.
“But we spoke to him, we presented him with our future plan, what we expected from him. To our surprise, we convinced him and he decided to stay. He’s a spectacular kid, a top-notch professional. We’re happy that he’s had the opportunity and that he’s responding the way he is.”
United have since been active in the Spanish market, bringing in Marc Jurado from Barcelona, before selling him to Espanyol in 2023, Alvaro Fernandez Carreras, who they sold to Benfica this summer and of course, current superstar Alejandro Garnacho who has turned himself into a fan favourite at the Theatre of Dreams.
Peña may be one that slipped through the net, but with Ineos’ commitment to bringing in the best young players around the world and the success Spain have recently enjoyed at youth level, it is surely a fruitful market they will aim to plunder in the near future.
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