New Liverpool signing Ronald Araujo has revealed that he used to wake up early in Uruguay to watch Luis Suarez play for the Reds, and that the former striker sent him a good luck message after his move.
Suarez connection
The 27-year-old defender has joined Liverpool on a season-long loan from Barcelona, with a €55 million (£47m) buy option. Araujo, who has been at Barcelona since 2018, made 213 appearances for the Spanish club and won three La Liga titles. He featured 38 times in all competitions last season.
Araujo, a Uruguayan, grew up watching Suarez's exploits at Anfield from 2011 to 2014. 'Of course I did,' he said of following Suarez. 'We loved watching the English Premier League and everyone in Uruguay gets up early in the morning to catch the games. Of course as a kid I used to watch Luis playing all those fantastic games for Liverpool. We all know what he achieved, the history that he made within this club during his time here. So it's fantastic.'
Good luck message
Araujo also revealed that Suarez reached out to him after the transfer was completed. 'From minute one, I've been sort of asked about that kind of comparison since I've arrived here. I get on really well with him, we're quite close. Just a few minutes ago I got a good luck message from him saying all the best, you've joined a great club and all the very best for your time here.'
The move comes as Liverpool reshape their defence following the departure of Ibrahima Konate to Real Madrid. Araujo is excited about the challenge ahead. 'I can't wait to get started. I'm very, very happy,' he said. 'I'm excited to be here at this massive club with lots of history. I'm excited to meet my teammates, excited to get started playing, and I'm very motivated and really up for getting going.'
Right move at the right time
Araujo believes the transfer is ideal for his career. 'I think it was the ideal move for me at this stage in my career. I think it was a move that was necessary for me to take. As soon as I heard that interest from Liverpool, everything went into action really, really quickly. As I say, I'm super-happy to be here and excited to get started. I'm glad about the interest and it was the right move at the right time.'
Liverpool have a friendly against Como on Saturday before starting their Premier League campaign at Newcastle on August 23.
