Araujo Joins Reds as Pre-Season Training Intensifies

Ronald Araujo lost no time getting to work. The defender, who completed a loan move from FC Barcelona on Monday, was straight into the thick of it in the Reds’ midweek training session as Andoni Iraola cranked up preparations.

The intensity matched the schedule. With a friendly double-header against Como 1907 looming, Iraola’s players were driven through rapid-fire rondos and sharp, high-tempo team drills on Wednesday, the tempo rarely dropping as the session wore on.

Alexis Mac Allister, back in the fold after beginning his pre-season programme earlier this week, joined the group and moved smoothly through the work. There was another boost for the coaching staff as Jeremy Jacquet and Curtis Jones both returned to full involvement after missing last weekend’s clash with AS Monaco.

New faces bedding in, key men returning, the pace rising. Iraola’s squad now turn their focus to Como 1907, with the training ground already carrying the feel of a team shifting out of warm-up mode and into something far more serious.