Barcelona have not changed their plans to incorporate Vitor Roque in January despite injury

Barcelona-bound forward Vitor Roque recently suffered a serious ankle injury during Athletico Paranaense’s home outing against Internacional and his medical reports have indicated that the youngster will not be able to play for nearly two months.

Interestingly enough, a report from SPORT has mentioned that despite the magnitude of his injury, Barcelona’s plans for the 18-year-old have not changed a bit, meaning that they remain hopeful of landing him in Catalonia in January.

No changes in plans

Given the expected time of his arrival, it is only fair to say that Roque will not play for Athletico anymore this year.

Meanwhile, as far as the injury is concerned, the report confirmed by this morning’s MRI at a Curitiba hospital reveals no signs of bone fracture. The issue is entirely related to the muscle.

However, some other reports have indicated that Roque might require surgery, which could delay his recovery time.

If the diagnosis is accurate, the Brazilian forward will not receive his medical discharge until late November.

Naturally, Athletico nor the player himself will want to rush his return. Furthermore, even his selection for the national team can be scrapped until the end of the year.

The Barcelona board and coaching staff are now expected to breathe a huge sigh of relief as Roque’s injury to his right ankle and subsequent recovery period will not pose any obstacles to his anticipated arrival.

This means that the stars are perfectly aligned for Barcelona to register Roque in January, who is currently in sensational form, having already netted 20 goals for Athletico Paranaense this season. 

However, what will ultimately decide his January registration is solely related to Financial Fair Play considerations rather than medical concerns.

With Barça in line to receive the payments from Libero that were due late in the summer, they have essentially activated the lever that will enable Roque’s registration come January.