FC Barcelona started this season with a clear surplus of center-backs in their squad. However, they have been forced to rely on only defenders in this position for almost the entirety of this season, as Ronald Araujo and Andreas Christensen have been unavailable from the start of the season, and Eric Garcia has also spent significant time on the sidelines.
However, Garcia has already returned to availability, while Ronald Araujo has also made it to the squad list for the upcoming game against Borussia Dortmund, and is likely to make his return to the pitch in the upcoming game against Leganes. Andreas Christensen is also expected to recover from his issue next month.
With the return of these defenders, there will once again be a surplus of center-backs in the team, and recent reports indicate that Barcelona have also decided to sign yet another center-back next summer, Jonathan Tah, who will join the Blaugrana club for free after running his contract out at the end of this season.
The German defender has been linked with Barcelona for quite some time now, and earlier it was believed that the Catalans are pursuing him as they want to part ways with another key defender, Ronald Araujo.
STUTTGART, GERMANY - JUNE 19: Jonathan Tah of Germany in action during the UEFA EURO 2024 group stage match between Germany and Hungary at Stuttgart Arena on June 19, 2024 in Stuttgart, Germany.
Photo by Matthias Hangst/Getty Images
However, according to SPORT, this is not really true, this is not entirely true, as both Deco and Flick consider Araujo one of the best center-backs in the world and they are determined to secure his renewal, with the idea of pairing him with Jonathan Tah at Barcelona.
In this regard, there has already been some progress made, as after a few barren months, negotiations for renewal are now intensifying, especially as the defender himself wants to continue at Barcelona.
However, with these two players, along with Inigo Martinez and Pau Cubarsi already performing at a high level, Flick will have an abundance of world-class center-backs to choose from, making his decision on the starting pair for next season a challenging one.
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BARCELONA, SPAIN - OCTOBER 23: Inigo Martinez of FC Barcelona with the ball during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Phase MD3 match between FC Barcelona and FC Bayern Munchen at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys on October 23, 2024 in Barcelona, Spain.