‘Couldn’t Do Anything’ – PSG Standout Recalls Red Card Foul by Barcelona’s Ronald Araújo

Paris Saint-Germain eliminated FC Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal. The capital club overcame a 1-0 deficit in the second leg and 4-2 aggregate to advance past the Catalan side and one player opened up about a key moment in the tie.

The turning point in the tie came midway through the first half of the second leg when Ronald Araújo received a red card following a foul on Bradley Barcola. After Barcelona went down to ten men, PSG scored four unanswered goals to defeat them 4-1 in the second leg and 6-4 on aggregate. 

Barcola recently spoke with RMC Sport and detailed what went through his mind as the play developed, leading to the foul and the swing of momentum that went to PSG.

“I knew Araujo was very fast,” Barcola said (h/t Mundo Deportivo). “When I saw him do it, I thought I was going to get past him. Because in the first leg of the match, I made a similar move, but I didn’t get past him very well. So he caught up with me. Then I told myself what would happen to him, and I knew he couldn’t do anything. Either he fouled me, or I was left one-on-one.”

Barcola is beginning to flourish in this final part of the 2023-24 season, and if the capital club want to advance past Borussia Dortmund in the semifinal, they’ll need the youngster to play well again.