Manchester United have expressed an interest in signing Barcelona defender Ronald Araujo but face competition from Bayern Munich.
The Uruguay international, 24, is firmly on the radar of Bayern Munich, with head coach Thomas Tuchel extremely keen on bagging his signature. The German tactician is even understood to have personally told the defender of the club’s desire to sign him on a phone call. The Bavarian giants are ready to break the bank for Ronald Araujo, especially after the knee injury suffered by Matthijs de Ligt in November.
However, Manchester United are also in the race for the Barcelona star’s signature. The Red Devils have reportedly enquired about the possibility of signing Ronald Araujo and have even offered to double his salary in a bid to persuade him to join Erik ten Hag’s forces at Old Trafford.
Araujo has established himself as one of the best defenders in Europe and is not looking to leave Barcelona. In turn, Barcelona are not concerned with plenty of interest in the player as Camp Nou officials consider it ‘standard practice’, given the defender’s combination of quality and age. The Uruguayan defender put pen to paper on a new deal last season that runs until 2026, so the Spanish champions are calm about the situation.
Man United keeping tabs on Ronald Araujo
It is no secret that Manchester United need to sign a top-quality centre-back in a bid to solve their defensive woes. Raphael Varane has fallen the defensive pecking order at Old Trafford this season, while Lisandro Martinez is still recovering from foot surgery.
Harry Maguire, meanwhile, has impressively re-established himself in Ten Hag’s first XI at the expense of Varane. Despite the England international’s good form in the last two months, neither he nor Varane appear to be a long-term solution in central defence for Ten Hag. As such, Man United appear to be interested in recruiting Ronald Araujo.
Undoubtedly among the best players in his position, Araujo is versatile enough to operate as a centre-back as well as a full-back. The Uruguay international has the right mix of pace, physicality and technical skills to potentially play alongside Lisandro Martinez at the heart of Man United’s defence.
At 24, he is still relatively young and could prove to be a solid long-term acquisition for the Red Devils. Araujo wants to compete at the highest level and challenge for big trophies every year, so Man United certainly have got an uphill battle on its hands to persuade the centre-back to swap Nou Camp for Old Trafford.
The Uruguay international has a contract with Barcelona until the summer of 2026, and the Spanish giants are under no pressure to sell him anytime soon.
I am Rohan Sengupta from one of the busiest cities in India, Mumbai. A Journalism graduate with a keen interest in sports, football is something I simply cannot live without and writing, discussing and analyzing the game is what I do 24*7.
