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After beating Villarreal 3-1 in their latest outing to make it back-to-back wins for the first time this La Liga season, Barcelona are preparing to take on Real Betis on Saturday.
There is a sense of optimism at the club following the appointment of club legend Xavi Hernandez as head coach. The club are also looking at ways to strengthen once the January transfer window opens.
Without further ado, let's take a look at the top stories involving Barcelona from 2 December 2021.
Barcelona CEO gives green light to make January signings
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Due to their financial woes, it has not been clear up to this point whether or not Barcelona will be able to make new signings in January. During the presentation of the Camp Nou renovation project, Barcelona CEO Ferran Reverter said (via MARCA):
"There is no doubt that Barcelona will sign or can sign [players] in January and the summer."
He also said that the club are confident about renewing Ousmane Dembele's contract. The Frenchman is yet to put pen to paper on a new deal and is currently on course to become a free agent next summer. Reverter said:
"Of course we can renew Dembele. It could take a little longer on the operational side because we have to look at it in detail."
Barcelona ready to sell Ronald Araujo for €60 million
Barcelona's 22-year-old centre-back Ronald Araujo has garnered interest from a number of top European clubs. El Nacional claims club president Joan Laporta is keen to offload the Uruguayan international to help the club raise funds that could be used to sign more players next summer.
The report adds that Xavi Hernandez admires Araujo and wants to build his side's defence around him. However, Barcelona's awful financial condition is forcing them to cash in on players they wouldn't otherwise sell.
Araujo has a release clause of €200 million but Barcelona will sell him if any side is willing to match the €60 million price tag they've slapped on him. Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United are among the clubs that have been credited with an interest in Araujo.
Edinson Cavani wants Barcelona move
The Times (via The Metro) claims that Edinson Cavani wants to move to Barcelona next summer to fulfill his dream of playing in Spain. The Catalans were interested in signing Cavani last summer. However, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer convinced Cavani to commit to the project for another year.
Cavani was a big hit at Manchester United in the 2020-21 season. He scored 17 goals and provided six assists in 39 appearances across all competitions for the Red Devils last term. However, he has fallen down the pecking order this season following Cristiano Ronaldo's arrival and has not played regularly.
In fact, he has only started two matches across all competitions this term. Multiple minor injuries have also not helped his case. Barcelona are growing more and more confident of signing Cavani on a free transfer next summer.
