Ronald Araújo's future at FC Barcelona is becoming less and less clear. Initially, everything seemed to indicate that the azulgrana club was strongly in favor of extending his contract to shield one of its best-regarded players and offer him salary conditions in line with a top-level player like the charrúa. It should be recalled that in his last renewal in 2022, Rivera accepted a significant salary reduction, going on to earn only about €3.36 million net per season.
Now, the contract extension of the former Boston River player gives the impression of being more stagnant than the Catalan entity expected, reaching the point where his continuity in the team is not entirely clear. Under this premise and considering that his contract expires in 2026, the Barcelona team saw it as a great opportunity to add a great revenue for him in this summer market. However, his unfortunate injury suffered with the Uruguay national team in the Copa América, diagnosed as an injury to the hamstring of the right thigh, with a recovery time of at least four months after surgery, ruled out any option to sell the '4'.
However, despite this setback, FC Barcelona did not consider it an absolute tragedy. Although their market strategy was altered by losing the alternative of obtaining income this summer, which practically 'forces' a detailed reconsideration of Araújo's renewal, the culé team found an opportunity in this situation. Given Ronald's prolonged injury, his record could be used to make room for other additions that Barça can make in this summer window, similar to what happened this winter with the case of Vitor Roque, when the Condal City side used the place left by the long term absence of Pablo Gavi (complete rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament of the right knee and an associated injury in the lateral meniscus) to register 'Tigrinho' for the rest of the season 2023/24.
The condition that could precipitate Ronald Araújo's goodbye
However, this move might not be well received by the charrúa. In fact, Uruguayan journalist Nicolás Saavedra suggests that if FC Barcelona carries out this action, it could provoke the dissatisfaction of Araújo, who would seriously consider leaving the club this summer. Although the 'escudero' is approaching his recovery with optimism, he believes he can shorten the timeline for his return.
However, if the Barcelona squad proceeds with this decision, Ronald would not be eligible to play in LaLiga at least until January, when the winter market opens, and he could be re-registered. This, in addition to delaying his return to action with the Culé team in the event that he shortens his recovery period, could generate a certain climate of uncertainty surrounding his registration, since although the azulgrana team's plan is to solve its problems with financial fair play as soon as possible, the resolution of this issue remains a real enigma.
This eventual frustration would add to the fact that his renewal, as mentioned above, could be stalled for purely economic reasons. Therefore, considering these two factors, it would not be surprising to see a possible departure of Araújo in this summer market. It is known that the Uruguayan has not ruled out listening to offers in order to make the best decision for his career, with big-money clubs such as Bayern Munich, Manchester United and more recently Paris Saint-Germain interested in him.