Néstor Araujo

Néstor Alejandro Araujo Razo (born 29 August 1991) is a Mexican professional footballer who plays as a centre-back. He is an Olympic gold medalist.

Araujo began his career with Cruz Azul in 2010, and played with the club for three years before joining Santos Laguna. At Santos, he played in over 100 matches, winning the Liga MX twice. He moved overseas to play for Celta de Vigo, spending four years there before returning to Mexico to join Club América.

He competed internationally since 2011: Araujo played at the 2011 Copa America, 2012 Toulon Tournament, Copa America Centenario, and the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup. He was on the Mexico team at the 2012 Summer Olympics that won the gold medal.

In 2010, Enrique Meza promoted Araujo to the first team. On 19 September, he made his Primera División debut for Cruz Azul, playing 90 minutes in the 3–0 home victory against Querétaro.

Santos Laguna

On 5 June 2013, Araujo joined Santos Laguna on a year-long loan deal with an option to buy. He made his league debut on 26 July against his former club Cruz Azul, playing the entire match as Santos earned a 3–2 victory. On 19 August 2014, Araujo scored his first goal for Santos in a 3–0 win over UAT in the Copa MX. He won his first cup with Santos Laguna following their victory over Puebla in the final of the Apertura Copa MX. The following year, Araujo won his first league title as Santos defeated Querétaro in the finals of the Clausura tournament. On 20 July, Santos defeated Club América to win the 2015 Campeón de Campeones cup; Araujo started the match and played all 90 minutes.

In May 2018, Santos Laguna defeated Toluca to win the Clausura tournament following a 3–2 aggregate score in the finals. Araujo missed the finals due to an injury he suffered while on international duty with the Mexico national team.

Celta de Vigo On 14 June 2018, Araujo joined Spanish club Celta de Vigo on a five-year contract. On 21 July, he made his debut in a friendly match against Espanyol.

América On June 24, 2022, Araujo made his return to Mexico and signed with Club América. In September 2023, he suffered a knee injury and was ruled out for the rest of the season.

International career Araujo received his first international call up in 2011 during the 2011 Copa America. In his international debut, he scored in a 2–1 loss against Chile during their first group stage match. He would go on to appear in the rest of the group stage matches and Mexico would end up last in the group.

Araujo would be an international regular under Juan Carlos Osorio, participating in various friendlies, the CONCACAF 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, the Copa America Centenario, and the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup.

On 27 March 2018, during a friendly match against Croatia, Araujo was forced off the pitch after 15 minutes when suffering an knee injury. He was sidelined since then, however in May he was named in Mexico's preliminary 28-man squad for the World Cup in Russia but had to withdraw due to experiencing tendonitis during his recovery.

Araujo was part of the squad that won the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

In October 2022, Araujo was named in Mexico's preliminary 31-man squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, and in November, he was ultimately included in the final 26-man roster.

Personal life Néstor has an older brother, Félix, who is also a professional footballer.

Career statistics

Club

International

Scores and results list Mexico's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Araujo goal. + List of international goals scored by Néstor Araujo Clausura 2024, Apertura 2024 Campeón de Campeones: 2024 Supercopa de la Liga MX: 2024 Campeones Cup: 2024

Mexico U20 CONCACAF U-20 Championship: 2011

Mexico U23 Pan American Games: 2011 Toulon Tournament: 2012 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying Championship: 2012 Olympic Gold Medal: 2012

Mexico CONCACAF Gold Cup: 2019

Individual Liga MX Best XI: Clausura 2017 Liga MX Best Defender: 2016–17 CONCACAF Nations League Finals Best XI: 2021