FC Barcelona have set themselves a deadline to make a decision on whether Vitor Roque will arrive in January or not according to SPORT.
Barca secured the Brazilian teenager in the summer when they agreed to pay $32 million ($30 million) in fixed money and a further ($33 million) in variables to Athletico Paranaense for his services.
The original arrangement was for the 18-year-old to cross the Atlantic to European football at the turn of 2024, though there were reported attempts to speed up the process ahead of the new season kicking off.
With Ansu Fati and Ez Abde leaving, Barca were undermanned on the left wing where striker Vitor Roque can also operate.
In the end, however, his current club didn’t want to let their star player leave prematurely, and instead help them on the quest to qualify for the Copa Libertadores where they reached the final lost to Flamengo on 2022.
This mission is currently failing with Athletico currently languishing in seventh in the Brazilian national championship, but it took a major hit when Vitor Roque was injured in late injured.
Stretchered off in tears from a match against Internacional, ESPN reported him as having ruptured the ligament in his right ankle.
Tests showed that Vitor Roque had merely suffered a sprain, and sporting director Deco, who was fundamental in getting his transfer over the line, has been their shared birthland to check in on the prodigy.
As we are now in November, 2024 is fast approaching and Barca must make a decision on when Vitor Roque arrives.
Though there are financial issues at play in registering him, the Catalans could do with Vitor Roque’s arrival from a sporting perspective.
By landing in Catalonia in a couple of months, he could already act as an understudy to Robert Lewandowski and afford the veteran Pole rest when required.
When Lewandowski has been injured as of late, Ferran Torres has provided cover but is not a pure striker like Vitor Roque.
With the Brazil international expected to receive medical clearance at some stage this month then, Barca have set themselves a deadline of the November 15 to make a final decision on whether Vitor Roque joins Xavi Hernandez’s squad in January or ahead of 2024/2025.