Barcelona president confirms contract talks with 3 key players

Barcelona president Joan Laporta has confirmed that the club are in talks with Ronald Araujo, Pedri and Frenkie de Jong over new contracts.

Araujo put pen to paper on his current deal back in 2022, with the club tying their star centre-back down to a four-year deal. The Uruguayan has, however, been heavily linked with a move away from Barca in recent months due to reported interest from Premier League clubs Manchester United and Chelsea.

De Jong has been similarly linked with a move to the Premier League in recent times. The midfielder's current contract in Catalunya also runs until 2026.

Pedri's contract also runs until 2026, with the injury-plagued midfielder finally being able to string together a run of games in the Barcelona lineup - making nine starts already in all competitions this season.

Speaking during his opening speech at FC Barcelona's Ordinary General Assembly, club president Laporta confirmed talks are ongoing between Barca and all three players' representatives, revealing: “We are working on Araujo, De Jong and Pedri’s new contracts.”

Laporta also utilised the speech to hit back at critics of the club, particularly around the ongoing Negreira case: “Our anthem says so: we fight against everything and everyone. This is not victimhood. We fight against those who repeatedly say that they appeal to the Negreira case that we are winning in court.

"Now that they are judging us, the instructions are not favourable. Every time we are doing well, it comes back out. There are people who don’t want us to win, they are angry that we win. To defend ourselves we cannot show weaknesses. They want to destroy us. We are brave and strong. We have to fight against these elements where they come from and what they are looking for.”

Barca were charged with "active bribery" by the Investigative Court No. 1 of Barcelona back in 2023, with a court case currently ongoing regarding the charges.

READ THE LATEST BARCELONA NEWS, TRANSFER RUMOURS & GOSSIP