Despite spending around £200 million last summer to recruit Víctor Muñoz, Bradley Barcola and Jérémy Jacquet, the arrival of Ronald Araújo on loan from Barcelona could prove to be the Reds' best bit of business. The Uruguayan has now started five successive Premier League matches at right-back, as well as being deployed at centre-back against LASK and Tottenham in the EFL Cup.
In short, the 27 year old has instantaneously become one of Andoni Iraola's first names on the team sheet, as well as a fans' favourites. Sat alongside his manager on Monday afternoon, speaking at a press conference ahead of Tuesday's clash with Villarreal, this is what Araújo said when asked about his future:
"It's very early to talk about these things. It's just trying to enjoy every day, continue to grow and develop every day to have that confidence. I'm really happy to be here, my family are also very happy. But it's a bit early to be talking about these things... I am hungry to give the best of my myself and grow as a player."Ronald Araújo
The Uruguayan of course gave these answers in Spanish, later on noting that he is taking English lessons, but insisting this is not an issue as "in football there's a universal language". Liverpool's loan agreement with Barcelona includes a €55 million option to buy at the end of the season, which is around £46 million.
That would represent a sizeable fee for a defender who will be 28 years old by then, but Araújo's performances may make it impossible for Liverpool not to push the boat out to keep him. Well, with Conor Bradley still sidelined, he continue to rack up minutes, after Iraola revealed that Jeremie Frimpong "has a new muscle", noting that he won't be back until after the international break.
During his time at Barcelona, appearing over 200 times for the Blaugrana, 86% of these matches came as a centre-back, with the rest at full-back. Similarly, all 13 of his international outings since 2023 have been as a central defender. Thus, Araújo was asked about being deployed as a wide defender during the news conference, but was eager to quell any suggestions that this may be a problem, despite admitting his favoured role:
"It is not a problem because I had already played there before. When I came here I knew there was a possibility to play as a right-back. It's not something different for me. Ultimately I try to give everything I can no matter what position I am in... I'm not going to deny I don't feel more comfortable at centre-back but... it's not a difficult position for me."Ronald Araújo
Expect to see Araújo in action a lot over the coming weeks, starting against Villarreal in the Champions League on Tuesday. He has won five of seven previous encounters with the Yellow Subarmine, hoping that trend continues.
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