Barcelona were hit with a heavy blow after medical tests on Monday revealed that the defender The injury of Ronald Araujo immediately in the duty of Uruguay is more serious than first thought. It will now be operated in Finland in the coming days.
Araujo is expected to be out for at least four months, but realistically he is unlikely to play again before December. It will have an impact on Barcelona's plans, as he had been a potential sale this summer. With no sign of negotiations improving on a new deal, he would have been available.
Barcelona will accelerate for Nico Williams, and believe that they can complete his signature in the month of July. The winger is willing to drop his salary to make the move. It is likely that there will be movements in the next few hours. @sport
— Barcacentre (@barcacentre) July 15, 2024
However, the Blaugrana are still looking for signings, and with seven central defenders on their books, Relief say Araujo's injury makes other parts more likely. While Clement Lenglet was expected to leave anyway, it means Eric Garcia and Mikayil Faye are closer to leaving the club, as they look to acquire assets. Garcia is wanted by Girona, where he spent last season on loan, and Faye will probably leave if Barcelona cannot come up with a convincing plan to give him first-team minutes.
In recent months it has been reported that Barcelona would be willing to deal Garcia for somewhere between €15-20m, while they were staying for at least the minimum of that scale for Faye, but the talks with Porto have tired on this. Of course, no one seemed likely to have regular minutes like that, even if they stopped, so Araujo wouldn't return until almost halfway through the season.
