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SportsMoney Liverpool Signs FC Barcelona Defender Ronald Araujo In Shock Transfer By Tom Sanderson ,
Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Tom Sanderson has been primarily based in Barcelona since 2019. Follow Author Aug 07, 2026, 05:39pm EDT Aug 07, 2026, 05:48pm EDT --:-- / --:-- This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more . This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more . Summary Liverpool has reportedly secured a loan deal for FC Barcelona defender Ronald Araujo for the 2026/2027 season. Transfer market experts Matteo Moretto and Fabrizio Romano confirmed the move, with Romano announcing a "HERE WE GO!" and a "surprise bomba." The verbal agreement between clubs was approved by Barcelona director Deco. Araujo has apparently become surplus to requirements at the Spotify Camp Nou, having fallen behind Gerard Martin and Pau Cubarsi in the center-back pecking order, and Jules Kounde at right-back. This move follows previous links to Bayern Munich with an €80 million bid. Details regarding a potential permanent buy option for Liverpool are currently unavailable.
Premier League giant Liverpool has signed FC Barcelona defender Ronald Araujo on loan for the 2026/2027 season according to MARCA 's transfer market expert Matteo Moretto and Fabrizio Romano, who both cited anonymous sources.
Moretto confirmed the exclusive dropped by Romano at around 23:30 local time in Catalonia.
“Liverpool agree loan deal to sign Ronald Araujo from Barcelona, HERE WE GO!,” Romano tweeted.
“Verbal agreement club to club with Barça now approved by director Deco. New centre back for LFC (Liverpool FC) with a surprise bomba ,” he added.
A deal between the Reds and the Blaugrana won’t have been difficult to hash out given how Araujo has fallen down the pecking order at the Spotify Camp Nou.
Last season, he lost his place in the starting line up to Gerard Martin who formed a formidable partnership in the heart of the back line with Spain’s recent Best Young Player at the World Cup, Pau Cubarsi .
You could even say his fall from grace started earlier when Inigo Martinez partnered Cubarsi the season before ahead of his departure to Saudi Arabia, but Araujo also returned from the 2024 injured then sidelined for some time.
At right back, where Araujo can also play, Jules Kounde is the preferred starter. When Kounde was injured in the spring, Flick often opted for his Swiss Army knife Eric Garcia instead, who can operate in a number of positions across the defence and midfield.
Debuting in the FC Barcelona first team in 2019 after joining the reserve outfit Barça B - or Atletic - from Boston River in his homeland Uruguay, Araujo has often been linked with moves away from the defending La Liga champions.
Bayern Munich came close to signing him in late 2023 to early 2024, but Barça held off despite rumoured bids of €80 million.
This was in an era when 16-year-old Cubarsi was just breaking through to the first team, however, with Martin also emerging as a regular under Flick in 2024/2025 and then blossoming further last term.
In the FC Barcelona of 2026/2027, it is difficult to see where Araujo fits. According to Mundo Deportivo, Liverpool has an option to buy the 27-year-old permanently.
After Ibrahima Konate’s free transfer to Real Madrid, it’s likely he’ll earn minutes in England under Andoni Iraola. If he fits in well at Anfield, this could tempt the Merseysiders into buying him outright.
Araujo leaves FC Barcelona as one of its four captains, after having amassed 213 appearances in which he scored 14 goals.
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