Barcelona are reportedly interested in signing 18-year-old Athletico Paranaense forward Vitor Roque at the end of the season.
A report from Beteve claims that the Catalan giants will not be able to afford the €45 million asking price to sign Vitor Roque in the summer transfer window. So they are hoping that the Brazilian striker will continue at Athletico Paranaense for another year and move to Europe in 2024.
Barcelona are going through financial limitations, and they will not be able to invest huge sums of money on players because of financial fair play regulations. However, they will be able to afford him next summer. It will be interesting to see if the talented young forward is willing to wait for Barcelona for another year.
He has been heavily linked with a number of European clubs including Arsenal. Vitor Roque is highly-rated in South America and has a big future ahead of him. The highly-talented forward could prove to be a solid long-term addition to the Barcelona attack.
The Blaugrana have been overly dependent on Robert Lewandowski for goals, and they need to bring in attacking depth this summer. They have been linked with a move for the Chelsea striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as well.
Barcelona have had an impressive domestic campaign, and they won the league title this year. However, they were quite disappointing in the European competitions. The Blaugrana will be hoping to challenge for the Champions League title next year. So they need to sign better-quality players in order for that to happen.
Meanwhile, Vitor Roque will be hoping to take the next step in his development. And the opportunity to join a big club this summer could prove to be attempting. If Barcelona fail to meet his €45 million asking price, there could be other suitors willing to provide him with an exit route.
There is no doubt that the opportunity to move to Barcelona will be an exciting proposition for the South American teenager. But he could be attracted to the idea of playing for other European heavyweights like Arsenal as well.
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The 17-year-old is naturally a centre forward, but he can operate on either flank. His versatility will be an added bonus for any club he joins. The Brazilian forward is a prodigious young talent and he is expected to develop into a world-class player in the near future.
