According to reports, one FC Barcelona star has ‘decided to leave’ after being ‘ordered’ to depart the club amid interest from Manchester United.
So far this summer, Man Utd have only made one summer signing, spending around £62.5m to sign Matheus Cunha from Wolves after activating his release clause.
While the Red Devils need to offload valuable assets to raise funds, they are continuing work on overhauling Ruben Amorim’s squad as they are prioritising attacking upgrades.
United appear to be furthest along in their pursuit of Brentford star Bryan Mbeumo, but a new striker is another priority after they failed to sign Chelsea newbie Liam Delap earlier this summer.
In an ideal world, United would also target upgrades in other positions this summer after finishing 15th in the Premier League and failing to win a trophy in 2024/25.
Man Utd could pursue a centre-back to fill the void left by Jonny Evans and Victor Lindelof amid interest in Barcelona star Ronald Araujo.
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At the start of this year, 26-year-old Araujo penned a long-term contract extension until 2031 as his previous deal was due to expire in 2026.
Despite this, Araujo’s future at Barcelona is in doubt after he was criticised for his decline in form last season, with reports indicating he’s been earmarked by club chiefs as a player to cash in on to fund their deal for Nico Williams.
Last week, a report claimed Man Utd’s ‘offer’ for Araujo has ‘arrived’, though he is also attracting interest from Juventus and Bayern Munich.
It has previously been suggested that the Uruguay international is against a move elsewhere, but a new report in Spain claims he has performed a U-turn, ‘deciding to leave’ as he’s ‘accepted orders’ from Barcelona’s hierarchy to do so.
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This stance allows Barcelona to ‘solve one of their most worrying issues’ as they need a ‘significant sale’ to sign and ‘register’ him ‘without any problems’.
A club is yet to meet Barcelona’s 60 million euro asking price, but Araujo’s U-turn removes a major stumbling block for this ‘sacrifice’ and a move to the Premier League is considered most likely at this stage.
The report adds:
‘Barça is breathing easier and hopes that Araújo’s future can be resolved in the coming weeks, and that all parties involved will be satisfied.
‘He has already begun to be offered to various clubs, and may end up in the Premier League, where he has the most admirers.’
