Aroujo to Liverpool: What He Adds and What Worries Me
A supporter’s breakdown of Ronald Aroujo’s profile, from aerial strength and recovery pace to concentration and build-up play. The key question is whether he settles quickly and fits the manager’s defensive plan.
Nationality: Uruguayan
Height: 6'3
Weight: approx 100kg
Strengths
Heading. Not as dominant as VVD but still exceptionally good with both defensive and offensive headers. I anticipate us being much more competitive on set pieces.
Contact - like a lot of Uruguayan players, he enjoys, if not outright relishes, the contest. He won't allow himself to be bullied and will bring some much needed bite (hopefully not like our last Uruguayan player) to our defence. He won't be trying to grapple opponents (cf Konate) but instead biding his time for an opportunity to either body them or channel them.
Speed - he looks very quick. Coupled with good reactions, I expect he will be a huge help to VVD in terms of being able to play a high line and recover. He also works hard to make it back in defence so Andoni will be comfortable for him to press forward.
Positioning - he positions himself well whilst simultaneously being aware of what is happening elsewhere on the field. So he is quick to react if he needs to cover. However, there are some question marks around this, primarily concerning his concentration (see below). He clearly wants to be proactive (he won't go missing in games), which is very different to the usual Barca mindset of just trying to force play away from goals. This means he sometimes seems to get caught in two minds about whether to tighten up on his man or back off. Thankfully, his pace enables him to get himself out of trouble. My hope is that Andoni will give clear instructions to make sure all the defenders (VVD included) are on the same page in this respect. This will make it much easier for him to integrate into our way of playing.
Long passing - I suspect this is one of the big reasons why Andoni went for him. Effectively, we will have 2 defenders who can hit long diagonal passes in behind the fullbacks for pacy wingers to attack the space. Teams will be stuck between pressing forward and leaving themselves open or having their fullbacks being pinned back.
Throws his body around - happy to go to ground (very much the opposite of VVD). Pulls off spectacular blocks and sliding tackles but could leave his partner exposed if he doesn't time it correctly. However, he does look to quickly get back to his feet and doesn't seem to miss many.
1v1 - exceptional. Vini Jr rates him as the hardest defender he has faced. He does a very good job of anticipating his opponents' moves. He uses his body well and times his tackles well. He also seems to have improved his decision making in this area (reference his disciplinary record).
Leadership - he was a leader at Barca and will help fill a much-needed gap with the departures of senior members such as Robbo. Hopefully he will also reduce the burden on VVD whilst enabling the younger CBs such as Jacquet to be eased into the team.
Weaknesses
Concentration - Barca fans have highlighted this as a potential weakness. I didn't notice this in the games I watched and the Football Manager scouts haven't highlighted it. It's possible this is because he is very different to the traditional Barca defenders they are used to, such as Pique and Lenglet (cf what I said earlier about him getting caught in two minds). However, they would have seen a lot more of his play than me, so I think we have to assume that this is a concern.
Short passing - he seems uncomfortable playing incisive passes into the midfield, opting instead for the safe option to his fellow defenders or the deepest midfielder.
Ball control - again this seems to the opinion of Barca fans. Barca fans do have very high expectations in this area so perhaps this is just them being unrealistic. However, in 2024 Luis Enrique famously mentioned that he thought Aroujo was a very good player but vulnerable if you blocked off his passing lanes. Having said that, in the footage I watched he surprised me that he was more comfortable with bringing the ball out of defence than I thought, but I doubt he is going to be trying to beat players with skill. His default option seems to be to pass the ball, so the midfield will have to work hard to provide him with passing opportunities.
Injuries -
2025/2026 Depression missed 7 games.
2024/2025 Bad hamstring injury missed 29 games.
2023-2024 Muscle injury missed 7 games.
2022-2023 Abductor tear missed 18 games.
The rest look like standard contact injuries eg ankle sprains etc. He managed to play 38 games (albeit only 11 starts) last season despite his time off to deal with mental issues. It should be noted that apparently these issues were triggered by sustained long-term abuse (including death threats) levelled at his family.
Discipline record
2025–26 Season: 3 yellow cards (2 in La Liga, 1 in the Champions League)
2024–25 Season: 3 yellow cards (3 in La Liga, 0 in Champions League)
2023–24 Season: 8/2 yellow/red cards (6/1 in La Liga, 2/1 in Champions League)
2021–23 Seasons: 14/1 yellow/red cards
This is tricky. Flick likes to play a very high line and so his CBs tend to accumulate cards. However, Aroujo's red cards against Chelsea and PSG were arguably the turning points in both those contests. I suspect this is a big reason that Barca fans have turned on him. I'm discounting 2024-2025 (given how many games he missed) but last season was a definite improvement. For example, whilst he averaged more fouls per 90 min than Konate, he received fewer yellow cards per 90 min. Hopefully this is an indication of a better decision making process.
In conclusion, if he can settle quickly this could be the reset he needs to reach the levels he is capable of. Personally, whilst I was caught by surprise by this move, I think it's a good one. What we are getting is a big, powerful, fast defender who is exceptional in the air and likes to defend on the front foot. He works hard and has a very good long pass. He will provide good competition for both CB and RB and, IMO, is a clear upgrade on Konate (injury concerns aside). Defensively he is a lot better than Frimpong (I'm not counting Bradley due to his long-term injury) so he will offer Andoni some good options in defence. Yes he has his flaws but if he didn't, he wouldn't be looking at a new club. However, I think most of his flaws are due to him not suiting Flick's tactics rather than him being an inherently poor player. At worst he leaves the team at season's end whilst having provided cover for our young CBs such as Leoni and Jacquet to be eased into the team. At best he will provide a great senior option to replace VVD for a low fee. Given he has taken a wage cut to join us I'm optimistic that he wants to be with us and see this as a low risk move.
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