Hansi Flick: Araújo facing private issue, not as Barça claim | OneFootball

Barça stated that the Uruguayan center-back was suffering from a stomach virus, but Hansi Flick revealed that “Araújo is not ready to play” and called for respect for the Barça player.

It was an open secret. Ronald Araújo is very affected mentally after his sending off against Chelsea and the subsequent thrashing Barça suffered in London. Although Barça reported that Ronald Araújo was suffering from a stomach virus that kept him out of the match against Deportivo Alavés, the German coach contradicted the club.

In the press conference prior to the important clash against Atlético de Madrid at Camp Nou, Hansi Flick acknowledged that the Uruguayan center-back and Barça captain is dealing with a personal issue. The Uruguayan defender has not trained normally since last Thursday.

The German asked for respect and privacy regarding a situation about which he did not want to give details, but which differs from the club’s official version. “Right now, Ronald Araújo is not ready to play; it’s a private situation and I would ask you to respect that. That’s all I can say,” Flick stated. SPORT’s cameras captured the defender’s agents, Edoardo Mazzolari and Edoardo Crnjar, at the Barça facilities.

The Uruguayan is left without protection

Information coming from inside the dressing room confirms that Ronald Araújo is deeply affected by his poor performance against Chelsea, although his teammates tried to play it down in the following days. In fact, Hansi Flick himself spoke about Ronald Araújo on Friday in a press conference and urged the media to draw a veil over the matter. The Barça coach wanted to protect his player.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.