Araujo talks Xavi, Vinicius, Van Dijk, Man City, captaincy: “I want to keep being a leader”

Barcelona have finally won La Liga again. The first one since 2018/19. Four seasons, surely feels like more, though, especially for a team that had become so dominant over the course of the last decade.

And while there is no Lionel Messi in this team, or Xavi, or Andres Iniesta, it does boast of quite a few leaders, all in their own regard. Most of them do not even wear the captain’s armband.

One of them, donning he #4, plays in central defence. Ronald Araujo has been one of the pillars of this Barcelona side and more than deserves all the praise thrown his way by the Spanish faithful.

According to him, though, it’s ‘all Xavi’.

“Xavi gave the club its hope back and we’ve learned a lot with him. Xavi is the Barca philosophy that had been lost in previous years: the need to divide, find the ‘third man’ and all these things that have always been done. Now we’re working on that,” Araujo said, as quoted by The Athletic.

Araujo, obsessed with football, consumes more than 16 hours worth of football over the weekend – in his own words, and tries to learn from the best.

“There are various players I watch and I try to take the best from each of them. These days it’s (Liverpool’s Virgil) van Dijk. Manchester City’s defenders as well are playing at a good level this season. I analyse a bit from all of them: the movements they make, how they move the ball, trying to learn.”

Araujo has penned a new deal with Barcelona, one that could see him stay at the club until 2026. It also envelopes a €1 billion release clause. This deal, however, has not been registered, yet, but the Uruguayan is not worried.

“I’m calm. Those are things the people who work with me and the club deal with. I’m calm, and from within the club, they’ve transmitted the same calmness and said everything will be resolved soon. I showed with my renewal that I’m happy and I want to be here. Nothing more. I think these are things that get resolved.”

He is also touted to become a captain of the side, as early as next season, with Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba both set to leave the club in the summer.

“I don’t do what I do to become captain. I do it because it comes naturally to me. If at some point the opportunity arises, it would be a source of pride. I’m going to continue like that always; during my whole career, I want to keep being that leader,” Araujo said about the rumours.

One of the interesting rivalries of Araujo’s admittedly short career so far is with Vinicius Jr. The Brazilian winger has come face-to-face with the Uruguayan on multiple occasions, winning a ton of them – which is rare for any defender vs Vinicius.

Araujo hailed Vinicius Jr in praise early on, saying he was the best 1v1 dribblers in the world right now.

“For me, Vinicius Jr is the best in one-v-ones today.”

“I try to concentrate and believe in my work and my potential. The most important thing (when playing against him) is to concentrate because he’s a player who runs for the whole 90 minutes. Maybe you win six or seven duels, but in one he’ll break your hips and score a goal against you.”

“The thing is, sometimes he goes from zero to 100 and buuff… God willing, there’ll be a lot more duels here in our careers. It’s beautiful.”

On Vinicius, it was only natural for Araujo to mention the racist abuse Vinicius has been receiving by opposition La Liga fans on a daily basis.

“What happened with Vinicius Jr was really bad; something that must not happen again. Unfortunately, it still happens. It happened in La Liga and to a well-known player but, in reality, it’s a message for the whole of society.”

Finally, he ended the conversation by thanking the Camp Nou faithful, who have come to adore him over the course of the last two seasons, especially, chanting ‘Uruguayo, Uruguayo’ – the same chant they showered Luis Suarez with, during his peak.

“That’s important in a club like Barcelona — it’s the club of (Lionel) Messi, Ronaldinho. That the whole Camp Nou chants my name is a source of pride and moves me. It’s important to give that back.”