Ronald Araujo agrees to new Barcelona contract

The player wanted to stay at Barcelona despite other offers

After reportedly reaching a verbal agreement a week or so ago, Barcelona has made it official and announced that the club reached a deal with Ronald Araujo on a contract extension.

The Uruguayan’s current contract was set to expire in June of 2023 and with Araujo being one of the more consistent — if not best — center-back on the team, they knew they needed to sign him to a new deal or risk losing him this summer.

Those concerns can now be put to rest as he is set to put pen to paper on Friday on a new contract that will see him stay at the club, at least, until 2026. Like with Ansu Fati and Pedri before him, Araujo’s release clause is set at €1 billion.

"“I’m really happy to be able to stay here, to stay for many more years,” Araujo said after renewing.“It is the fruit of a lot of hard work, so I thank all the coaches who have helped me.“When I came to the club and joined the B team, it was a tremendous thing to get to the first team.“I remember the first time I went to the Camp Nou and I saw how the people cheered for Luis Suarez and my wish was that one day they would cheer for me.“My wish now is for many titles to be won here.”Source: Marca"

He had offers from Premier League teams who could have potentially offered the 23-year-old Araujo higher wages. But his desire was to stay at the Camp Nou. Xavi Hernandez also wanted him to stay and has often referenced his improvement on the ball and his importance to the team.

Whether or not one considers him a La Masia graduate, there is no question he’s been the best defender Barça B has produced in a while and he’s shown it on the pitch. His physicality makes him a tough defender to get around and he’s good in the air both in defending and attacking.

Losing him would have been a significant blow as the club is short on dependable center-backs. Gerard Pique only has one or two years left at the top level and Eric Garcia has proven to be error prone.

Araujo will be 29 by the time his new contract expires and still very much in his prime. If he continues to progress at the rate he’s been, it would come as no surprise if Barcelona sign him to another contract. Barring any setbacks, Araujo has the possibility of marking an era at the club, similar to those of Carles Puyol and the aforementioned Pique.