Khaberni - Today, December 27, marks the second anniversary of Vitor Roque's "early" arrival at Barcelona, the deal described by "Sport" newspaper in a report today, Saturday, as a mix of wrong decisions and disastrous timing, resulting in considerable financial and artistic losses for the Catalan club.
"Sport" explained that bringing Roque in the winter of 2023 (instead of the summer of 2024) to replace an injured Gavi was the first mistake; the club threw a young player into the midst of a team suffering from structural faults and immense pressures under the leadership of Xavi Hernandez.
Despite being signed for 30 million euros (potentially rising to 61 with variables), the "Brazilian Tigre" did not gain confidence, managing only 16 matches and two goals.
Sacrificing "El Zalzouli" to sever the link
The Spanish newspaper revealed "painful" details in the player's departure; for Barcelona to break his loan at Betis and sell him definitively to Palmeiras in February 2025 for 25.5 million euros, Laporta's administration was forced to provide a financial "gratuity" to Betis.
These compensations involved giving up an additional 30% of the selling rights of Moroccan star Abdel Samad El Zalzouli, reducing Barcelona's future share from 50% to just 20%.
The explosion of talent away from "Camp Nou"
Ironically, as "Sport" mentioned, Roque, who failed at Barcelona, is currently thriving in the Brazilian league, leading Palmeiras in the Libertadores and has returned to play for the Brazilian national team under Ancelotti, proving that the problem was not in the "Tiger's" talent, but in the Barcelona environment that "shattered his dreams"
