‘He’s back’ – Barcelona star singled out for special praise after win over Benfica | OneFootball

A member of the defensive ranks at La Liga giants Barcelona has on Wednesday evening been singled out for widespread adulation.

The player in question? Ronald Araújo.

This comes owing to his performance in Barcelona’s Champions League showdown with Portuguese heavyweights Benfica.

Hansi Flick’s troops of course marked their return to action a short time ago, making the trip to Lisbon for the first leg of their Last-16 tie with Benfica.

When all was said and done, despite having the odds stacked against them owing to an early red card for Pau Cubarsí, the Blaugrana emerged on the right side of an impressive result, owing to a solitary 2nd-half strike on the part of Raphinha.

The Brazilian intercepted a loose pass in the Benfica half, before rifling home a sumptuous long-distance finish to secure a memorable triumph.

And yet, whilst it will in turn be Raphinha who takes the bulk of the headlines post-match, it is another member of Flick’s squad whom many others have been quick to lavish praise upon.

Amid an at-times underwhelming stretch of form since his recovery from a long-term injury, Ronald Araújo was back firing on all cylinders on Wednesday.

The Uruguayan was nothing short of monstrous at the heart of Barcelona’s backline, conjuring up a true leader’s performance when his teammates needed it most.

So much so that, following the full-time whistle at the Estádio da Luz, many have gone as far as to assure that the real Araújo is now ‘back’.

Conor Laird – GSFN