Football is unpredictable, but what happened this afternoon at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys during the Copa del Rey match against Rayo Vallecano (round of 16, first leg) will go down in the annals of sport as one of the most surreal, controversial and commented plays in the recent history of FC Barcelona.

In the 73rd minute, with the score 2-1 in favor of Barça and Rayo looking for an equalizer, the action that is going around the world came.

Rayista striker Jorge de Frutos received a deep pass on the left wing and stood alone against Joan García, the young 24-year-old goalkeeper who today defended the culé goal in the absence of Ter Stegen and Szczęsny (both injured).

What happened next is hard to believe even watching it replayed over and over in slow motion.

The play that no one expected

De Frutos faced García with power.

The Blaugrana goalkeeper came out decisively, but instead of directly bailing out the forward, he did something that no one had ever seen in an official competition: he launched himself forward with his arms open, but not to catch the ball…

but to intercept the path of Gerard Martín himself, the Barça left back who was running parallel down the wing trying to close the space.

García, in an instinctive (or calculated, depending on who you ask) move, literally “pushed” his teammate into the path of the ball. Gerard Martín, surprised, collided head-on with the ball that De Frutos had just shot.

The impact was brutal: the ball hit the defender squarely in the face, who collapsed to the grass with his hands over his nose and mouth. Immediate blood.

The goalkeeper, however, took advantage of that millisecond of deviation to drop to the ground and block the rebound safely.

The referee blew a foul… in favor of Barcelona! The play was invalidated due to a previous offside by De Frutos (confirmed by the VAR), but that was the least of it.

Gerard Martín had to be evacuated on a stretcher. Initial diagnosis in the locker room: fracture of the nasal septum, possible minor concussion and several affected teeth. He will be out for 4 to 6 weeks.

The club confirmed that there was no serious eye damage, but the images of the impact are one of those that hurt just to see.

Joan García: hero for some, villain for others

The reaction in the stadium was unanimous at first: total disbelief. Then, absolute division.

The most radical culés fans began to chant “Joan García, Joan García!” as if he had just saved a penalty in the Champions League final. Others, more critical, shouted “Murderer!” and “You killed Gerard!”

On social networks the debate went viral in a matter of minutes:

«Joan García is a genius. He has sacrificed a teammate to save the game. That’s God-level goalkeeper instinct. «This is not football, this is attempted murder. Gerard Martín could have gone blind. Expulsion for life. «The goalkeeper who eats the side.

We already have a new meme for 2026. » «Mr. Flick, please, do not renew this crazy man’s contract.»

Hansi Flick, in a subsequent press conference, tried to calm the waters without committing too much:

«Joan is a very brave goalkeeper, very intense. He has done what he believed was best for the team at that time. Obviously we are very sorry for Gerard’s injury, he is a great kid and a great professional. Now the priority is his recovery.”

Asked directly if he considered the action “unacceptable,” the German simply smiled and replied: “Football sometimes has these things. Let’s talk about it internally.

Gerard Martín: the involuntary victim

The young 24-year-old full-back, who had entered the starting eleven due to Balde’s loss, was one of the best-performing players in the squad.

His progression on the left this season had been notable: two assists and a consistency that had placed him on the radar of the senior Spanish team.

In the hospital, according to close sources, Martín was “destroyed” emotionally. Not so much because of the physical injury (which will require nasal surgery and several weeks of rest), but because of the feeling of betrayal. «I don’t understand why Joan pushed me.

I was going to close the space, it was my action.

“He put me in front of me as if I were a human shield,” he reportedly declared to teammates in the locker room.

The precedent that nobody wanted

Joan García thus becomes the first documented goalkeeper in the history of professional football who deliberately uses a teammate as a “human obstacle” to deflect a shot. Although the action was invalidated due to offside, the gesture has been recorded forever.

Some football historians are already comparing the play (in an ironic tone) with Maradona’s famous “Hand of God” or Baggio’s missed penalty in the ’94 final.

But there is no romantic epic here: only controversy, blood and a question that no one knows how to answer yet: was it instinct, calculation or simple madness?

Barça moves forward… but with an open wound

The match ended 3-1 in favor of Barcelona (Lewandowski, Raphinha and an own goal from a Rayista defender).

But the image that everyone takes away is that of Gerard Martín on a stretcher, the blood on the grass and Joan García celebrating the “stop” as if nothing had happened.

In the locker room, according to witnesses, there was a dead silence when García entered. Nobody congratulated him. Some players avoided looking him in the eye.

The next League match, against Valencia at Mestalla, now presents itself with a very rarefied atmosphere. Gerard Martín will be in the stands with a protective mask. Joan García, predictably, will return to goal.

Football has seen it all: fights, bites, insults, betrayals. But a goalkeeper who literally “sacrifices” his teammate to make a save… that’s new.

Joan García has made history. Too bad it’s for the worst of reasons.