‘I acknowledge it’… Barcelona captain shares a heartfelt message as he faces criticism for another costly performance | OneFootball

Even though it was heartbreaking to see their team getting eliminated from the UEFA Champions League after having been only a few minutes away from the final, no one is questioning the effort FC Barcelona put into this tie and their entire UCL campaign.

Players like Lamine Yamal, Pedri, Frenkie de Jong, etc., all impressed in this semi-final tie, and the team in general also impressed with its fighting spirit and grit.

Ronald Araujo takes reponsibility

However, one player who had to face a lot of criticism following this game was the defender Ronald Araujo. The Uruguayan was subbed in at the 78th minute for Inigo Martinez, and was well below his expected standards in both the last two goals scored by the Italians.

After facing a lot of criticism on social media, Mundo Deportivo reports that the Uruguayan defender himself took to social media to apologize and to cheer the team ahead of another crucial game against Real Madrid.

His social media post went as:

“I accept it and I acknowledge it. I’ve never been one to hide, and I never will be… It hurts to be out, but this doesn’t end here. We worked, we fought, and we gave everything in a very tough series. It wasn’t enough, and that hurts.”

Barcelona defender Ronald Araujo. [Photo Courtesy: The Official website of FC Barcelona]

Pride and encouragement for the team

The defender went on to encourage the team ahead of the coming El Clásico:

“But I also feel proud. Proud of this team. Of my teammates, of the crest we represent, and of every ‘culé’ who stood with us every step of the way. During this 2025 we showed, as a team and as a fanbase, the winning mentality we have. El Clásico is coming and we’re going to give it our all. We are Barça, we’ll come back stronger.”

It is quite good to see Ronald Araujo taking up the responsibility and coming out to accept that his effort was not enough in such an important game. Hopefully, this will prove to be a learning experience for him and he will come back stronger in the remaining games this season.