Liverpool will pay Ronald Araujo’s full salary during his season-long loan from Barcelona, with the defender earning a significant wage as their captain.
Araujo is set to finalise his move to Liverpool this weekend and is expected to join up with Andoni Iraola‘s squad on Sunday.
It comes with a surprise deal agreed after talks developed over Thursday and Friday, with Barcelona willing to loan out the 27-year-old.
Per Fabrizio Romano on YouTube, in order to allow Araujo to leave on loan rather than a permanent transfer, Barcelona insisted on his wages being paid in full.
His salary is reportedly worth £180,000 a week after tax, which suggests his overall wages are in the region of £300,000 a week before tax.
Ronald Araujo of FC Barcelona (Image: PRESSINPHOTO SPORTS AGENCY/Alamy Live News)
Ronald Araujo of FC Barcelona (Image: PRESSINPHOTO SPORTS AGENCY/Alamy Live News)
That would place Araujo among Liverpool’s highest earners and highlights the gamble involved in such a deal – though no transfer fee is involved and the club will have weighed up the short-term risks.
Liverpool have also negotiated an option to buy in their agreement with Barcelona, which will almost certainly have been stipulated by the Spanish side.
The fee that would need to be paid is as yet unreported, but Araujo is under contract to 2031 and FotMob projects his market value as £22 million.
Why Liverpool have agreed Ronald Araujo loan
February 5,2023 Ronald Araujo (4) of FC Barcelona before the match between FC Barcelona and Sevilla FC corresponding to the twenty day of La Liga Santander at Spotify Camp Nou in Barcelona, Spain. Credit: rosdemora/Alamy Live News
February 5,2023 Ronald Araujo (4) of FC Barcelona before the match between FC Barcelona and Sevilla FC corresponding to the twenty day of La Liga Santander at Spotify Camp Nou in Barcelona, Spain. Credit: rosdemora/Alamy Live News
It remains to be seen if there is any intention of signing him permanently, but as a temporary fix he could prove useful in Iraola’s first season.
Iraola heads towards the new campaign with doubts over the fitness of Jeremy Jacquet and with Giovanni Leoni, Joe Gomez and Conor Bradley all sidelined through injury.
There are high hopes for Jacquet and Leoni as the future of Liverpool’s defence, with the club considering them two of the best centre-back prospects in the world.
But the fact remains that neither have played in the Premier League or the Champions League and given their current ailments will need to be managed carefully as part of a squad which lost Ibrahima Konate this summer.
Despite it being a straight loan, signing Araujo is a costly deal due to the wages involved, but if he can help the transition in Liverpool’s defensive setup in his season at Anfield, it could be worth the outlay.
Virgil van Dijk can continue to lead Iraola’s defence with the help of another experienced option, before the likes of Jacquet, Leoni, Ifeanyi Ndukwe and Mor Talla Ndiaye take over for the future.
Ronald Araujo of FC Barcelona
Ronald Araujo of FC Barcelona (Image: PRESSINPHOTO SPORTS AGENCY/Alamy Live News)