Araujo rejects Barca deal amid Real Madrid, Man Utd and Chelsea interest
Robin Bairner
- 26 Jan 2022 02:17 CST
- 5 min read
Barcelona youngster Ronald Araujo has turned down the club’s latest offer of a new contract.
The 22-year-old Uruguay international centre-back has established himself as a regular at Camp Nou over the past 18 months, featuring on 63 occasions for the first team.
He initially arrived at the club from Boston River in October 2020, when he signed a contract that expires in June 2023. Given his dramatic increase in importance to Barca, Araujo is presently paid well below what would be expected.
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Barcelona are eager for the defender to tie the future down on another long-term deal, but Marca reports that talks, which took place lack week, have been unsuccessful.
This comes as a major blow to the club, particularly given that some of their major European rivals are also on the look out for Araujo.
Chelsea and Manchester United are the latest clubs to be monitoring his situation, while Real Madrid have been linked to him for several weeks.
What next for Araujo and Barca?
Barcelona have made Araujo’s contract extension a priority and it is something they will continue to pursue until the summer. However, the financial constraints around their wage budget are a complicating factor to any deal. These will continue next season, so they will have to manage the case tactfully.
Given the defender knows that he can potentially be offered a bigger deal elsewhere, this is a complicating factor.
Equally, if no deal can be concluded, Barca will have to consider selling Araujo in the summer.
Losing him in 2023 for nothing would represent a major blow for their finances when he is worth a significant sum.
Indeed, with several top clubs presently monitoring his situation, Barcelona may hope to trigger a bidding war between Chelsea and Manchester United. They will want to avoid Araujo, however, going to Real Madrid at all costs.
