Barcelona 'want to bring Vitor Roque move forward to January'

The Catalan giants announced at the beginning of the summer transfer window that they have agreed to sign the 18-year-old striker, who has penned a long-term contract until 2031.

Barca will allegedly pay an initial €30m (£25.6m) plus an additional €31m (£26.5m) in bonuses for the highly-rated teenager, but the initial plan was for the Brazilian to remain in his homeland until the 2024-25 season.

However, according to Mundo Deportivo, via Goal, Barcelona are now looking to integrate Roque into Xavi's first-team setup and register the player in time for the beginning of next year.

The report adds that new sporting director Deco is scheduled to fly to Brazil and hold talks with Roque's current club Athletico Paranaense during the international break.

The La Liga champions are said to be confident of striking a deal with Atletico Paranaense, but the proposed move will depend on their financial situation.

The main factor that could determine Roque's future is whether Barcelona receive a payment of around €40m from Libero Football Finance for the purchase a stake in Barca Studios.

Barca are tasked with significantly reducing their current wage bill as their current player and staff costs are believed to be in the region of £347m, exceeding La Liga's new salary limit by approximately 50%.

As things stand, Barca will only be allowed to use around half of any revenue they generate if they wish to recruit new players in January.

Barca chief Deco is also planning to check up on the fitness of Roque after he was stretchered off with an ankle injury in Athletico Paranaense's Brasileiro win over Internacional at the end of last month.

Although the teenager will not require surgery, he is facing several weeks on the sidelines after tests revealed that he has sustained ankle ligament damage.

Roque has enjoyed an impressive campaign in front of goal in 2023, scoring 20 goals in 42 appearances across all competitions including 11 goals in 22 games in the Brazilian top flight.