Ronald Araujo joins Barcelona squad for pre-season training

Ronald Araujo was back at Barcelona on Monday morning with the defender the latest player to return to pre-season training.

The 22-year-old was part of the Uruguay squad who made it to the quarter-finals of the Copa America before being knocked out on penalties by Colombia.

Araujo then enjoyed a break but is now back to work and could feature in Barcelona’s upcoming friendlies ahead of the new season.

After two games at the Estadi John Cruyff, Barca now heads out to Germany for a clash against Bundesliga side Stuttgart on Saturday. The Catalans then take on Red Bull Salzburg in Austria on August 4 before heading back for the Gamper Trophy against Juventus.

Araujo’s return means the squad is slowly returning to full strength. Antoine Griezmann, Frenkie de Jong, Clement Lenglet, and Memphis Depay all returned last week and played in Saturday’s friendly against Girona.

Barca are still without injured stars such as Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Philippe Coutinho, and Ansu Fati, while Pedri, Eric Garcia, and Oscar Mingueza are at the Olympics. Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets are due back at the end of this week, while Emerson, Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero are still on vacation after the Copa America.