It was notable during Barcelona’s pre-season friendly matches against Real Madrid and AC Milan that Julian Araujo played zero minutes, despite starting against Manchester United in the Catalans’ first fixture in the United States.

Breaking: President Laporta refuses to give up on the signing of Nico Williams, who continues to be Barcelona’s priority for this summer. For Barça, Williams’ return to Athletic Club’s training is not decisive, and the club remain convinced that the winger will end up accepting…

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Araujo was off the back of a promising loan spell at Las Palmas last season, although it appears that he does not feature in Hansi Flick’s plans for the 2024-25 campaign. Given that Jules Kounde, Hector Fort and Alex Valle are options at right-back already, it makes sense.

A departure is likely to be sought during the remaining weeks of the transfer window. According to Kery Ruiz (via Estadio Deportivo), there are three teams keen on Araujo: Girona, Real Betis and Sevilla. In the case of Barcelona’s Catalan rivals, they have reported submitted an offer of €7m (plus €3m in add-ons).

Barcelona are looking for €10m in their efforts to sell Araujo, so Girona’s offer could well be accepted. This would be an explanation for his lack of playing time in the United States.