Liverpool fans will feel more hopeful about Ronald Araujo’s future after the latest news from Barcelona.
Ronald Araujo has made a great start to his time at Liverpool. The Uruguayan international has been playing as a right-back and has scored a few goals already. The 27-year-old is known for his strong and aggressive defending, which fits perfectly with Andoni Iraola’s style of pressing hard to win the ball back.
Liverpool fans really like what they’ve seen from Araujo at Anfield, so they’re hopeful the club will sign him permanently next summer. Recent news from Barcelona and their sporting director, Deco, gives Reds fans even more reason to be optimistic.
Lately, Barcelona’s defense hasn’t impressed their coach, Hansi Flick. They lost games to PSG and Real Madrid and struggled against Atletico Madrid before making a comeback. Flick is now looking for some defensive help to boost the team’s chances of winning both the Champions League and La Liga.
Deco spent a long time searching for a center-back over the summer, but Flick decided not to sign anyone finally. Meanwhile, Araujo went on loan to Liverpool, leaving Barcelona with only four center-backs. There’s also concern about Andreas Christensen’s injury issues—he’s out for a month right now.
Both Iraola and Liverpool fans have been pleased with Araujo’s performances, and the club is seriously thinking about using their option to buy him next summer. If Liverpool decides to pay the €55 million buyout clause and Araujo agrees—which seems likely since he’s happy there—Barcelona won’t be able to bring him back, according to Marca.
Barcelona is currently leading La Liga, and Flick has shown he’s good at adapting by using La Masia players when needed. But he still wants more experience in defense as they chase trophies this season.
Last summer and during the season, they were linked with Inter Milan’s Alessandro Bastoni but didn’t sign him. That doesn’t mean they’ve stopped watching him, though. More recently, Barcelona has also been linked to Manchester United’s Lisandro Martinez, especially after Martinez made some comments about United’s recruitment.
According to Sport, Barcelona is interested in Martinez if they don’t have to spend too much. There was also talk last summer about Martinez possibly joining Atlético Madrid, so Barcelona would face some competition if they try to sign him.