Hansi Flick to plead case to Barcelona over star transfer

Barcelona have returned home from Saudi Arabia on a wave of euphoria following their Spanish Supercup win over Real Madrid, but one of the main artifices of their first title under Hansi Flick could be on the way out. Ronald Araujo’s contract situation has left the Uruguayan and Barcelona at an impasse.

As Juventus weigh up submitting an improved offer for Araujo, Barcelona have scheduled a meeting with Araujo and his agents for this week. Sporting Director Deco is expected to open the door to an exit if Araujo declares his intention to leave the club.

The Supercup could alter Barcelona’s perspective though. Araujo for his part was effusive in his celebrations in Jeddah, and was shown plenty of love by his teammates. If, as expected, Inigo Martinez is ruled out for the next five weeks, that will leave Barcelona much more short-handed at the back, with Andreas Christensen still some weeks off being able to play 90 minutes every three days.

Barça have requested an extension to continue playing at Montjuïc in April, and plan to return to the Spotify Camp Nou in May. @ffpolo, @sergisoleMD

— barcacentre (@barcacentre) January 13, 2025

Which leads to the second meeting planned for Deco, with Hansi Flick and his coaching staff. The German manager is expected to argue for keeping Araujo at the club in order to keep them in the hunt for titles. Araujo is ahead of Eric Garcia in the pecking order, and if it were up to Flick, Garcia would depart before Araujo, as per Diario AS.

The conditioning factor remains Araujo’s contract. Barcelona have to consider whether they can agree a new deal with Araujo, and if not, how much it will hurt his value in the market if they do not sell him now. On the other hand, losing Araujo could hurt their prize money and challenges for trophies, which would also be costly.