Now that the 2025-26 season is over for Barcelona, a number of their players will have taken the chance to reflect on the last 10 months. One of those to do so has been club captain Ronald Araujo, who had a particularly challenging campaign.
Araujo sat out a couple of months of action between November and January due to mental health struggles. As per Markhe opened up on how things came to a head after being sent off against Chelsea in the Champions League.
“It was a pile of things. I knew something was wrong with me because I didn’t feel well. I wasn’t happy. At home I was neither the husband nor the father they needed. I had been like this for a long time, accumulating things, without talking about them, keeping everything to myself, until there came a time when I exploded. It was that action against Chelsea that made me reconsider and realise that something was happening to me. I knew that I needed help and work to get out of that difficult moment.
“These are things that come together. Not only at a football level, because there are also situations that come from childhood and grow up. That action against Chelsea was key. Because I already had a card and I couldn’t go that way. It was obvious that the head was not right. I remember that I went to the locker room alone and there I said: ‘Enough’. I realised that I needed to talk about it with my wife, with the club and ask for help. It has been one of the best decisions of my life.”
Araujo reveals reaction from Barcelona personnel
Araujo opened up on how the club reacted to his decision to take time away from the game. He admitted to being very touched by the support he received from his teammates, and also those higher-up within Barcelona.
“It was tremendous. I was very surprised because they took it in a very natural and respectful way. Deco, who was the first one I spoke to, Alejandro, Bojan, the president and all the people close to him behaved very well. I will always be grateful to them, to Barça and to my teammates, who have been key since I made the decision. They encouraged me, sent me messages and trusted me. It was very nice and a great motivation to move forward.”
Araujo, who has been linked with a move away from Barcelona, confirmed that he is doing much better now, and he is looking forward to the future – starting with this summer’s World Cup, where he will feature for Uruguay.
“I feel very well and very happy. I enjoy playing football and training. I see things from another perspective. It has not been an easy season, in which I have had to take on another role, but I will tell you that it is one of the seasons in which I have learned and grown the most. I have been able to work on myself, I learned to see it differently and to relativize things. I believe in myself a lot and I feel that my best years are coming.”
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