The board of FC Barcelona has resolved one of its priority folders for the final stretch of the summer market. The club closes the renewal of Iñaki Peña for three more seasons, until June 2029, to facilitate his loan move to Elche.
Eder Sarabia's team has already given the 'Ok' to the operation, with which the Alicante goalkeeper will fight for the starting position with Matías Dituro. Barça, in addition, takes advantage of the departure of the 26-year-old goalkeeper to free up a spot in their squad and register Wojciech Szczesny.
The Polish player renewed last month until 2027, but the club still cannot update his registration due to still exceeding its salary margin. The priority after Iñigo Martínez's departure and Marc-André ter Stegen's long-term injury was to register Joan García and Marcus Rashford from matchday 1.
Clear outlook in Barça's goal, until Ter Stegen's return
'Tek', however, has had to wait until the third match of the tournament, like Gerard Martín and Roony Bardghji, to receive his federative license. Iñaki inherited Ter Stegen's '1' after the German's injury was confirmed and was a substitute against Mallorca and Levante, along with Diego Kochen.
The American, with a subsidiary team registration, will remain as the third goalkeeper, while Szczesny, from next Sunday in Vallecas, will be Joan García's substitute. The 35-year-old goalkeeper already waited three months for his opportunity after arriving at Barça in October 2024 and will have no problem covering the back of the former Espanyol player.
As things stand, the Azulgrana team clears the outlook in its goal, at least, until Ter Stegen's return in winter. 'Matts' will be the third option in Hansi Flick's plans, so he will have to look for an exit in January, probably, like Iñaki Peña, through a loan.
Iñaki Peña and his fight for the starting position in Elche
In that sense, the Alicante native goes to an Elche where, for now, the experienced Matías Dituro maintains the starting position. The Argentine, at 38 years old, has accumulated 61 appearances with the Elche team, being key in the promotion last season.
In the beginning of the 25/26, although he has conceded a couple of goals, it has allowed Eder Sarabia's team to rescue a point against Betis and Atlético (1-1 both matches). The 'franjiverdes', clearly, will fight for permanence in the lower part of the table, but will be a tough opponent to beat, like Leganés the previous year.
The goalkeeper trained at La Masia already knows what it represents to fight for the position with veteran goalkeepers, with the 24/25 season being particularly tough for the Spanish goalkeeper. Peña took over the starting position after Ter Stegen's injury at the end of September, but lost the starting position in January after Szczesny's good performances in Liga and Champions.
In total, he played 45 matches with the first team in which he conceded 64 goals, with 11 clean sheets. FC Barcelona hopes that his performance in Elche will be optimal to negotiate a possible transfer in the summer of 2026.
This year, the culés expected offers in the order of 10 million euros. However, given the lack of formal proposals, the club decided to renew him to avoid his departure at 'zero cost' at the end of the 25/26. Will this loan be beneficial for the 26-year-old goalkeeper?