Barcelona defender returns from injury lay-off

Barcelona were blessed with the meteoric rise of Ronald Araujo and Oscar Mingueza last season or their problems in defence could have been much worse than they already were. The former, however, had a tough time suffering from injuries, especially on his ankle which saw him out of action every few weeks.

Injury struck again for Araujo recently, when he had the chance to represent Uruguay at the Copa America. After being out of action for several weeks, though, the youngster has recovered from his injury, Mundo Deportivo claims.

Araujo was on the bench as an unused substitute today as Uruguay fell to defeat in a penalty shootout against Colombia. He did not play a single minute in the tournament and missed three games because of injury.

Barcelona have already transferred in Eric Garcia from Manchester City on a free transfer, and have been in the market looking for a world-class central defender with the likes of Alessandro Bastoni, Matthijs de Ligt, Jules Kounde, and Aymeric Laporta linked.

However, it seems unlikely that the club has the funds to bring in any of these players, and will therefore should hope Araujo stays fit through the course of the season. His mere presence is bound to help the team.