FC Barcelona have been dealt another setback as Ronald Araujo has been ruled out of Saturday’s La Liga clash against Deportivo Alaves.
The reason for his absence? Well, there are two opinions.
As per reports
from AS, the Uruguayan centre-back missed training on Thursday and again today, staying in the gym while the rest of the squad worked on the pitch. His absence means he will not feature at the newly renovated Spotify Camp Nou this weekend.
Araujo started Barca’s midweek clash against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge but was sent off in the first half — an error that has drawn heavy criticism.
It has also been reported that the 26-year-old defender has been deeply affected mentally by his mistake that cost the team heavily at Stamford Bridge.
The dressing room, however, is said to be fully behind their second captain during what has been a difficult few days.
Araujo Hit With Virus
On top of the psychological blow, Araujo is also suffering from a physical setback, with head coach Hansi Flick confirming the reason for his exclusion.
“He has a stomach virus. He’s out of training today and will also miss tomorrow’s match,” Flick said in his pre-match press conference.
Reflecting on the Chelsea defeat, the coach added, “We’re all feeling down. The defeat was tough. We thought we could have won. We have to be optimistic for the next match.”
With Araujo unavailable, Andreas Christensen is an obvious candidate to step in, but Flick refused to reveal his hand: “We’ll see. I don’t usually like to talk about the possible starting eleven.”
