Ronald Araujo was one of the FC Barcelona players facing one of the most demanding international call-ups ahead of the upcoming break, which begins next week. After all, the Uruguayan national team wi...
Ronald Araujo was one of the FC Barcelona players facing one of the most demanding international call-ups ahead of the upcoming break, which begins next week.
After all, the Uruguayan national team will be playing two friendly matches in Malaysia, against the Dominican Republic on Friday, 10 October and Uzbekistan on Monday, 13 October.
Ronald Araujo given a break
However, in a welcome boost for Barcelona, Marcelo Bielsa, Uruguay’s coach, has released Araujo from this double commitment, reports Mundo Deportivo.
These are not official FIFA matches and would have required an extremely long trip from Barcelona for the second club captain.
From the Catalan capital to Kuala Lumpur, the venue for the first of these friendlies, the distance is 10,567 kilometres by air – around 17 hours of travel without stopovers.
Uruguay coach Marcelo Bielsa. (Photo by Marcelo Hernandez/Getty Images)
Araujo is not the only important player omitted by Bielsa for these friendlies. He has taken the same decision with Federico Valverde of Real Madrid and Darwin Nunez of Al-Hilal, among others.
With Araujo rested during this international break, Hansi Flick can breathe a little easier, knowing that one of his key defenders will not suffer any injuries while on national team duty.
So far this season, Araujo has played six times across all competitions, even scoring a goal in the process.
The 26-year-old did not play any part in the midweek 1-2 defeat to PSG, however, and is expected to start on Sunday against Sevilla. Who among Pau Cubarsi, Andreas Christensen, and Eric Garcia will partner with him remains to be seen.
Category: General Sports
