Riqui Puig, Ronald Araujo should go out on loan: Koeman

After relieving Quique Setien of his duties as Barcelona manager, the Catalonia club put their faith in former Netherlands manager Ronald Koeman. However, with the recent developments at Barcelona, fans are starting to feel a little uneasy about the board’s decisions. 

While most football fans would agree that Rakitic, Vidal, and Semedo needed to go, the same cannot be said for Luis Suarez. The Uruguayan was informed that he was not part of Koeman’s plans at Camp Nou and has now joined Atletico Madrid for free after terminating his contract with Barcelona. 

The youth are the frontrunners for securing opportunities whenever there is a rebuilding phase at any club. Frank Lampard’s Chelsea is a great example of that very idea in recent times. However, Koeman’s approach has left many scratching their heads. 

Despite offering official promotions and shirt numbers to Trincao, Pedri and Alena, the promising youngsters Riqui Puig and Araujo have not been given a call up yet. 

Puig is one of the brightest midfielders to come out of La Masia in recent years, with fans heralding the young Spaniard as the rightful heir of the once legendary Barcelona midfield that boasted of Xavi and Iniesta. 

PSV and Porto are reportedly interested in luring Puig away from Barca on loan with the promise of minutes on the pitch being too valuable to ignore. 

While no official arrangement has taken place, Koeman has publicly stated that Puig should go out on loan to earn some experience. As for the reason why, Koeman simply answered that Puig didn’t fit into the 4-2-3-1 that he was planning for at Barcelona. 

Despite the manager’s comments, Puig and Araujo are determined to stay at the club and fight for their place in the lineup. 

This did not go down well with fans, and the manager could have fans turn on him even before the first match is played. 

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