Barcelona's Araujo Says Thigh Surgery 'Best Option'

Football - LaLiga - Cadiz v FC Barcelona - Estadio Nuevo Mirandilla, Cadiz, Spain - September 10, 2022 Barcelona's Ronald Araujo during the warm up before the match. (Reuters)
Football - LaLiga - Cadiz v FC Barcelona - Estadio Nuevo Mirandilla, Cadiz, Spain - September 10, 2022 Barcelona's Ronald Araujo during the warm up before the match. (Reuters)
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Barcelona's Araujo Says Thigh Surgery 'Best Option'

Football - LaLiga - Cadiz v FC Barcelona - Estadio Nuevo Mirandilla, Cadiz, Spain - September 10, 2022 Barcelona's Ronald Araujo during the warm up before the match. (Reuters)
Football - LaLiga - Cadiz v FC Barcelona - Estadio Nuevo Mirandilla, Cadiz, Spain - September 10, 2022 Barcelona's Ronald Araujo during the warm up before the match. (Reuters)

Uruguay's Ronald Araujo has denied putting club before country after the Barcelona defender opted for surgery on his injured thigh less than two months before the World Cup.

Araujo picked up the injury on Friday in Uruguay's 1-0 defeat by Iran in a friendly, leaving the pitch after only five minutes.

Barca said the 23-year-old had suffered a tendon injury in his right thigh and that he would undergo surgery on Wednesday, a decision which casts doubt on his availability for the World Cup.

"I love my country and I love my national team," Araujo posted on Twitter.

"After consulting with several professionals, we decided that the best option is surgery. It's not about choosing one or the other, it's about health and getting back to 100% as soon as possible."

Uruguay will face Portugal, Ghana and South Korea in Group H at the Nov. 20-Dec. 18 World Cup in Qatar.



Miretti Scores Landmark Double as Genoa Beats Lecce

Genoa's Fabio Miretti celebrates after scoring a goal for his team during the Serie A soccer match between Genoa and Lecce at the Luigi Ferraris Stadium in Genoa, Italy, Friday, March 14, 2025. (Tano Pecoraro/LaPresse via AP)
Genoa's Fabio Miretti celebrates after scoring a goal for his team during the Serie A soccer match between Genoa and Lecce at the Luigi Ferraris Stadium in Genoa, Italy, Friday, March 14, 2025. (Tano Pecoraro/LaPresse via AP)
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Miretti Scores Landmark Double as Genoa Beats Lecce

Genoa's Fabio Miretti celebrates after scoring a goal for his team during the Serie A soccer match between Genoa and Lecce at the Luigi Ferraris Stadium in Genoa, Italy, Friday, March 14, 2025. (Tano Pecoraro/LaPresse via AP)
Genoa's Fabio Miretti celebrates after scoring a goal for his team during the Serie A soccer match between Genoa and Lecce at the Luigi Ferraris Stadium in Genoa, Italy, Friday, March 14, 2025. (Tano Pecoraro/LaPresse via AP)

A first-half double from Fabio Miretti, his first brace as a professional, gave Genoa a 2-1 win over Lecce in Serie A on Friday.
The midfielder scored two exceptional goals to lift 12th-placed Genoa to equal on points with Torino, which has a game in hand, The Associated Press reported.
The first was a volley taken over his shoulder and from a tight angle after 16 minutes. The second, in first half stoppage time, came when he took an excellent pass from Rusian Malinovskyi and spun inside the box before firing home.
Nikola Krstović pulled a goal back from the spot for Lecce midway through the second half but Lecce remained 16th, just two points ahead of the relegation zone.
The southern club is winless since the last day of January, a run dating back six games.