Barcelona have prepared two plans to acquire the services of 18-year-old forward Vitor Roque amid interest from Arsenal and Chelsea.
According to a report by Fichajes, Barcelona are keen on having Vitor Roque in their ranks. The 18-year-old forward has been doing wonders of late, and he is on the radars of some of the biggest clubs from across Europe.
Despite their financial struggles, the Catalan giants have prepared two possible ways of landing the teenager at the club ahead of next season. Roque came through the ranks at Cruzeiro before joining Athletico-PR in the summer of 2022. The 18-year-old has gone from strength to strength over the past few seasons.
He has established himself as a regular in the Athletico setup and has been putting in some impressive displays over the past year. In the ongoing season, he has featured in 19 matches and has 12 goal involvements. The teenager has found the back of the net on eight occasions and has four assists to his name. His performances have attracted the attention of a lot of clubs from across Europe.
While his contract at the Brazilian club runs until the summer of 2027, he is expected to be on the move in the summer. Athletico are ready to let him leave but only if their asking price of €35 million is met. Barcelona’s financial situation won’t allow them to pull off a transfer with such a price tag. As a result, they have two alternatives to get a deal over the line.
Barcelona are ready to bring him in on loan for a season, with a mandatory purchase option for 2024. It will allow them the time to improve their finances and meet the price tag. The other option is to distribute the payments over multiple seasons with a decent sum upfront. It will allow them to avoid any kind of violation of the Financial Fair Play.
Meanwhile, Arsenal and Chelsea will make life difficult for the Spanish giants. The Gunners are keen on bringing in a new forward to their ranks in order to once again push for the Premier League title. And, they have their eyes on the 18-year-old Brazilian wonderkid.
The Blues have focused on signing young talented players over the past few windows. And, they are expected to once again go ahead with the same plan. Roque is on Chelsea’s radar as they believe he could be a great addition to the present as well as the future.
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Meanwhile, Barcelona will hope they can use Deco, the Brazilian legend who is their sports director to soften the demands of the Brazilian club and land the teenager at the club despite competition from the English clubs.
