Ronald Araujo celebrates at the end of the match between Real Madrid and FC Barcelona at Santiago Bernabeu on March 20, 2022, in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Burak Akbulut/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Barcelona present ‘final offer’ to Ronald Araujo
Gerard Pique (R) and Ronald Araujo (L) celebrate their victory after the LaLiga Santander match between Real Madrid CF and FC Barcelona at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on March 20, 2022 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Gonzalo Arroyo Moreno/Getty Images)
The Uruguayan wants to stay at Barcelona but wants to feel valued
Ronald Araujo has been quite the revelation for Barcelona. After struggling to produce a quality center-back from their academy, they seem to have found one in the Uruguayan.
With his contract set to expire in 2023, renewing Araujo should be a priority for the Catalans.
While negotiations have stalled, the club remained confident an agreement could be reached.
That confidence is going to be put to the test as according to Catalunya Radio, Barcelona has presented their’ final offer’ to Araujo and now he has to make the choice of accepting or not.
Araujo is one of the lowest paid players in the squad. The report claims that the club’s latest offer would see the center-back’s wages tripled.
Given his performances, other clubs are monitoring his situation and are ready to make an offer. According to the Daily Mail, Liverpool and Chelsea have already expressed their interest. With the situation Chelsea find themselves in, if they are indeed interested, Liverpool would be clear favorites.
Araujo would prefer to stay at Barcelona but he also wants to feel valued. It does not help Joan Laporta or the club when reports filter out at how much they are going to pay their new signings with Franck Kessie being a prime example.
Looking ahead to next summer, Samuel Umtiti, Clement Lenglet and Oscar Mingueza could all be gone. Therefore, Barcelona could theoretically be short when it comes to defenders and losing Araujo would be a significant blow.
With Araujo continuing to show his quality and only being 23, he could be a stalwart in the Barcelona backline for the next decade. Even with Andreas Christensen set to join, Araujo is close to becoming irreplaceable in Xavi’s scheme.
