There are three certainties in life: death, taxes, and Ronald Araujo costing FC Barcelona on big Champions League nights. There is a famous saying: “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me three times, shame on both of us.”
For the third successive season, Ronald Araujo has had a disastrous night in a Champions League game, two of which include first-half sendings-off. For a player who wears the armband for the Catalan club, it simply is not acceptable.
Both of Araujo’s yellows against Chelsea were easily avoidable. The first came after he argued with the referee about a foul on Lamine Yamal and pushed it over the edge. From his position as captain, you could give him a pass on that.
LONDON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 25: Ronald Araujo of FC Barcelona is shown a red card by referee Slavko Vincic during the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD5 match between Chelsea FC and FC Barcelona at Stamford Bridge on November 25, 2025 in London, England.
Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images
However, the South American completely lost his head for his second yellow card, taking out Marc Cucurella in reckless fashion. Despite being on a booking, he went in for a full-blooded slide tackle and got it completely wrong.
One would understand if this were a one-off moment where emotion got the better of him, but this has become a habit. Everyone can sense a pattern: Araujo is easily rattled during big Champions League games.
It is much better to be a goal down than a man down, but the Uruguayan simply does not seem to grasp that. He goes in with complete conviction to win the ball back, but gets it wrong more often than not.
Yesterday, when he received the second yellow, Araujo looked like a broken man. He looked like a player who knew he had no leg to stand on. He passed the armband to Frenkie de Jong and slowly went off, without a semblance of an argument.
LONDON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 25: Hansi Flick, Head Coach of FC Barcelona, arrives at the stadium prior to the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD5 match between Chelsea FC and FC Barcelona at Stamford Bridge on November 25, 2025 in London, England.
Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images
Araujo did not even have the heart to look up at the travelling Barcelona supporters. There seems to be something fundamentally wrong with his confidence at the moment. Let us not forget, this was the same player who looked like the only assurance in a wobbly back line a few seasons ago.
Unless Araujo can fix up mentally, if he is able to, this should be the last we see of him in a Barcelona shirt in a big Champions League game. He is a liability, and Hansi Flick of all people should understand this.
It might feel harsh to rip apart one player on a night when the team’s collective performance was a failure. However, by getting that red card in the first half, Araujo all but killed any chance of a Barcelona comeback, and it is time for him to start taking responsibility for his actions.