Araujo’s contract with the Catalan giants ends in the summer of 2023 and so far the La Liga club have not been successful in getting him to sign a new deal.
Barcelona paused talks earlier this year, but resumed them last month amid a situation where Araujo’s agents find the club’s current offer to be unacceptable.
He has been linked with a host of top Premier League clubs, with Liverpool having made an approach, but it is Chelsea’s interest which is claimed to have set alarm bells ringing at the Camp Nou.
According to Catalan daily Sport, Chelsea have decided they want Araujo to replace Rudiger and have let the player know they would be willing to double Barcelona’s current offer to him; they are also prepared to pay a transfer fee to sign him.
Chelsea are preparing themselves for the departure of Rudiger, while the futures of Cesar Azpilicueta and Andreas Christensen also look uncertain.
The centre-back is highly rated at Stamford Bridge, where he is felt to be the right fit to replace Rudiger.
This season, Araujo has made 24 appearances in total for Barcelona, despite missing out on a few games due to injury, and has missed only one match for them in the league since November.
