Arthur Melo, Ozan Kabak, Steven Caulker, Javier Manquillo, Victor Moses, Aly Cissokho. No, not the cast of the next blockbuster horror movie. Just the last six players that Liverpool have signed on loan. Insert vomiting emoji here.
I mean, it’s not great, is it? The Reds haven’t exactly got the best track record when it comes to short-term fixes. So what about Ronald Araújo, then? Will Liverpool’s latest loan addition finally break the curse?
So this one kinda emerged from nowhere. The need for another centre-back in the squad has been pretty clear since Ibrahima Konaté left. Not only because of the fitness concerns surrounding Joe Gomez, Giovanni Leoni and Jérémy Jacquet, but because of some of the contract situations in there, too.
Gomez and Virgil van Dijk both have 12 months remaining on their respective deals. The former is surely destined to leave given his ongoing fitness issues, while the latter is 35 years old now.
In that sense, I’d argue Liverpool need a new centre-back to arrive on a permanent basis — which makes Araújo’s season-long loan a bit curious — but nevertheless, at least Richard Hughes has done something.
The Reds have always had such a high bar when it comes to investing in centre-backs. Over the course of the past decade, Liverpool have basically signed a grand total of four, excluding the guys who signed for the price of a few magic beans. Van Dijk, Konaté, Jacquet and Leoni.
The good news is two of those guys joined recently. One is 21 years old, and the other is just 19. I’m very high on both, and I think Liverpool intend on giving the pair every chance to lead the next generation.
That’s cool, but it unfortunately comes with the downside of not signing an adequate 25-year-old option who might stunt their growth, like Jan Paul van Hecke or Ezri Konsa.
So if you’re set on picking up a short-term solution, I’m not sure you can get much better than Araújo. The captain of Barcelona, old but not ancient at 27, and a player who’s accustomed to playing in a demanding system.
Remember how Liverpool played football under Jürgen Klopp? Well, Andoni Iraola is intent on restoring plenty of that. That means defending high, leaning into transitions, playing fast and embracing risk.
It’s easy to play as a centre-back when you’re defending your own penalty box. It’s harder when you’re expected to cover massive spaces. When you’re presented with one-on-one situations against top attackers. Life under Iraola will be like that, which is why Araújo is a decent stylistic match.
The below video is from earlier this year, but it still applies. Apologies for the fringe.
The South American pops in a few key departments. First, he’s a monster on the physical side. And second, he’s a great one-on-one defender in the numbers. Sound familiar? There’s shades of Konaté in there.
Araújo is more of a sprinter than most of his peers, and he loves getting his body across once beating his opponent in a race. He’s aggressive and craves contact. Qualities that suggest he’s suited to playing as part of a proactive unit.
The Uruguayan got dribbled past less often than any other centre-back with at least 900 minutes played in La Liga last term. Liverpool always tend to look for one-on-one expertise when scouting centre-backs, although I’ll be honest, he looked slightly less convincing to me on the tape.
Araújo is also strong in the air, which is a nice perk given the current state of English football. He should feel at home within the physical environment of the Premier League.
He won 76 per cent of his aerial duels in La Liga last season. For perspective, that placed him second in the whole division — again using that 900 minutes threshold — and Antonio Rüdiger posted 74 per cent.
As a bold defender who naturally engages with opponents, won’t suffer at the hands of too much intensity and has won major honours, Araújo is a great fit for Iraola and Anfield.
Now for the negative end. The asterisk. The reason you subscribe. So it is with great regret that I anoint Araújo with the dreaded Bozo Gene. Standing on rakes is unfortunately part of his nature, at least based on the past 18 months or so.
Once again, Araújo is quite Konaté-like in the sense that tons of dominant work can be undone by one moment of madness, with the Catalan skipper prone to spilling over at times.
He’s your stereotypical Uruguayan defender in the sense that he’s essentially got no chill. This guy is flammable. Araújo will gamble. That willingness to embrace risk could benefit him under Iraola, but it’s important to note that he gives all or nothing vibes at times.
He’s also relatively ordinary with the ball at his feet, often opting to play short rather than expansive, but I’d argue some of his negatives could be alleviated by playing alongside Van Dijk.
In addition to using his build-up strengths to mask Araújo’s limitations, the Dutchman will wear the armband on Merseyside, which should allow the Reds loanee to cool down and focus on his own game.
It’s worth touching on his recent form, too. Liverpool have been able to jump on the option of loaning his services because of his struggles over the past two seasons, with Araújo even resorting to a mental health break last year after being handed a red card against Chelsea.
His injury record isn’t the cleanest, and he’s resorted to getting minutes at right-back in recent times, which does mean he offers an option there for Liverpool but also captures how Pau Cubarsí has kinda replaced him at the Camp Nou.
Overall, I’m actually into this one.
Araújo is clearly in need of a fresh start, with a tranquil period alongside Van Dijk sure to do him some good. There’s a player in there, one who played extremely well under Xavi and suits Iraola, Anfield and the Premier League.
He’s yet another physical freak at the back. Classic Liverpool. But whether his best days are behind him is a genuine question. At 27, I don’t mind rolling the dice given there’s upside and no long-term risk attached to him flopping.
Just don’t stand on that rake.
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