Barcelona expect incoming January signing to be fit by December, in constant contact with player

Journalist Anais Marti Herrero has affirmed that the Barcelona medical team is in constant touch with Vitor Roque.

Although they are not as optimistic as his agent Andre Curry, they are assured that his recovery is going well at the moment and if everything is right, the forward may return to action in December.

Roque was signed by Barcelona during the summer transfer window and although he is slated to arrive next summer, as part of the contract, the Blaugrana are already contemplating an early arrival.

As such, things are not as easy as it may seem. To begin with, Barcelona will need to adjust their finances in order to accommodate Roque in January. For that, there are only two approaches Barcelona can opt for.

One is wage deferrals which Barcelona are already working on and second, they would have to sanction a big exit. 

While the contract renewals of the likes of Frenkie de Jong and Marco Alonso are already talked about, the team from Catalonia just cannot afford to let anyone leave owing to a shorter roster.

So what is Barcelon’s plan?

When Roque’s acquisition was confirmed, the sporting management, which was led by Mateu Alemany at the time, did not plan to bring him on board until June 2024 in order to avoid including his salary expenses in the current year’s budget.

Nevertheless, there remained a possibility, however slim, of the Brazilian making his way to Barcelona in January and Deco is actively chasing this possibility.

The current director of football has travelled to Brazil during the international break, seizing the opportunity to engage in discussions with the player and Athletico Paranaense. 

The purpose of these talks is to lay the groundwork and outline the terms that would allow Roque to join the team during the upcoming winter transfer window.

Roque recovering from an injury

At this moment, all Barcelona can do is practise patience with Roque as he continues to work on achieving fitness after picking up an injury in September. 

Now, it is important to note that prior to this incident, he had never experienced an injury of such severity. Initial projections indicated that his comeback would likely occur by the year’s end, but his agent’s words released optimism.

“In just four weeks, at the latest, he could be match-fit,” said Curry while hinting that Roque might make his return as early as November 12, a whole three weeks ahead of the anticipated timeline.

While Barcelona are considering this timeline as entirely far-fetched, they are hopeful that the player will return in December.