When Barcelona announced the signing of Vitor Roque, the agreement stipulated that the forward would only leave Athletico in July 2024. However, the Catalan team made it clear that their intention was to bring forward this transfer, and Gavi’s injury opened a spot that allowed him to achieve it.
In this way, Deco, sports director of the institution, confirmed that “Tigrinho” will move to Spain in January. In fact, the player already said goodbye to his current club after the 3-0 victory against Santos, in his last game in front of the Furacão fans.
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Deco, happy to add Roque
“He is a player that we already had signed,” commented Deco, in statements published by As. “And even if it were to incorporate him in June, we had the option of it being in January. With Gavi, we had to make a decision. They are players in different positions, but also looking at it with the coach we decided that the best thing is the immediate incorporation of Vitor,” he assured.
Roque’s arrival may fuel certain rumors of competition with Robert Lewandowski, the Blaugrana’s starting centre-forward. However, the Portuguese was responsible for making it clear that, in addition to having different characteristics, they occupy different roles: “He moves between lines, he plays between spaces. Is young. Vitor is going to be one more to fight to play. But we are talking about Lewandowski. The good thing is that I have it to learn.”
