At a glance
- Joan Garcia is one of four goalkeepers called up by Spain.
- The FC Barcelona shotstopper has talked about his desire to represent La Roja
- Garcia won an Olympic gold medal with Spain at the Paris Olympic games.
FC Barcelona goalkeeper Joan Garcia has won his first call up to the Spain national team for the March international break on Friday, with head coach Luis de la Fuente calling him “one of the best goalkeepers in the world” while highlighting his professionalism and composure.
Joan arrives fresh from a stellar display in the Champions League against Newcastle, cementing his status as the cornerstone of Hansi Flick’s defence and a fan favourite.
Furthermore, he’s the most efficient goalkeeper among those selected. Whilst Arsenal’s David Raya has a higher number of appearances, Joan has kept a clean sheet in 50% of his matches (11 out of 22 in La Liga).
Luis de la Fuente’s latest squad list has confirmed what was an open secret at the Camp Nou: Joan Garcia is now among the world’s elite.
The FC Barcelona goalkeeper has been called up for the first time to the senior national team for the friendlies against Serbia and Egypt, the final test before the final squad list for the 2026 World Cup.
Luis de la Fuente and his old acquaintance
The national team manager has been full of praise in explaining his selection, even breaking with the usual practice of taking three goalkeepers to include four (alongside Unai Simon, David Raya and Álex Remiro) in his squad.
De la Fuente said the following at a press conference when asked about the Sallent native: “Joan Garcia is a truly outstanding goalkeeper. We haven’t just discovered him now. He was an Under-21 international under me five years ago. He can bring team spirit, a strong work ethic, quality… He’ll push the others to give their best. It was time for him to come through. It’s good news.”
A Comparison: Joan Garcia versus the ‘untouchables’
To understand why Joan has broken into the national team, you only need to look at his statistics this season compared with those of the two mainstays in the national team net, Unai Simón (Athletic) and David Raya (Arsenal):
| Goalkeeper | Club | Matches played | Clean Sheets | Success % |
| David Raya | Arsenal FC | 31 | 15 | 48.4% |
| Joan García | FC Barcelona | 22 | 11 | 50.0% |
| Unai Simón | Athletic Club | 28 | 5 | 17.9% |
- David Raya (the leader in clean sheets): Currently the provisional Premier League Golden Glove winner, his 15 clean sheets are the highest tally in Europe’s top leagues, which explains why he has been De la Fuente’s first-choice goalkeeper so far. Across all competitions, Raya has already kept 20 clean sheets this season.
- Joan Garcia (Leader in efficiency): Although he has played fewer matches overall than Raya due to the La Liga schedule, his clean sheet percentage is higher (50%). In other words, Joan keeps a clean sheet in one out of every two matches he plays. He’s the clear leader in this statistic in Spain, ahead of names such as Courtois (11 in 28) and Oblak (10 in 26).
- Unai Simon (Going through a rough patch): The official statistics show a difficult season for the Athletic goalkeeper, with just five clean sheets in 28 matches. This reinforces the argument that the change in the national team’s starting line-up is not a whim, but a reality based on current performance.
Why it matters
For Garcia, recognition and being called up by De La Fuente is one more notch on his belt towards joining an elite group made up of the likes of Real Madrid’s Thibaut Courtois and Liverpool’s Allison.
It is that of the best goalkeepers in the world, which the La Roja boss already indicated Joan Garcia now belongs in.
