MADRID, Sep. 12 (.) –
FC Barcelona’s Uruguayan defender Ronald Araujo stated that next Tuesday’s game against Bayern Munich makes the team “strong”, so they will have to face it “with humility” to take into account the negative context that they drag in the confrontations with the Germans in the last editions of the Champions League.
“This competition is always difficult and there are great rivals, Bayern is one of them. These games make us strong as a team, we must have the humility to know where we come from,” Araujo explained this Monday at the press conference prior to the second day of the group stage of the ‘Champions’.
Last year, Barcelona lost twice 3-0 to Bayern in the group stage, after the humiliating 8-2 defeat in the quarterfinals in 2020, which were played in a single game in Lisbon, due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“We knew what we had to improve from last season, above all conceding few goals. Tomorrow we will try to do what we have been doing against great strikers, but we hope we can keep a clean sheet”, added Araujo about the defensive solidity of the Catalan side since the start of the campaign, where they have only conceded two goals.
Asked about Robert Lewandowski, who this time will play at the Allianz Arena as an opponent, the Uruguayan recognized the difficulty of marking him. “We suffered enough, having him with us is something tremendous,” he added.
Now, Barcelona enjoys an unbeaten record in which it exhibits its offensive gunpowder in each match. “The arrival of Xavi restored the illusion to the ‘culés’, the signings this year have also helped. In the same way as the young people we have, already with more experience. A set of things that make the fans happy”, said.
For this reason, the player feels valued after being a key part of Xavi’s plan. “I’m at the best club in the world and where I want to be. I’m happy for the people, the team, we’re all very excited to continue growing,” he said.
Asked about the World Cup in Qatar, which will be played in mid-November, Araujo does not have it in mind at the moment. “It’s not present for me, I’m focused on tomorrow’s game, we have a complicated schedule in October. Once it’s over we’ll think about the World Cup,” he concluded.
