90min

Barcelona close to agreeing Vitor Roque transfer ahead of Premier League clubs

Vitor Roque is one of the hottest talents in Brazil; Arsenal, Chelsea, Man Utd & Newcastle have all shown interest; Roque himself has long preferred a transfer to Barcelona.

By Jamie Spencer, Graeme Bailey

Vitor Roque is nearing a transfer to Barcelona
Vitor Roque is nearing a transfer to Barcelona / ALBARI ROSA/GettyImages
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Barcelona are close to agreeing a €40m transfer for 18-year-old Brazil forward Vitor Roque, although 90min understands there remains an outstanding issue with the exact structure of the proposed deal with Athletico Paranaense.

Only turning 18 earlier this year, Roque has been playing first-team football in his homeland since 2021 and joined Athletico from first senior club Cruzeiro last year.

Roque already has ten goals in 25 appearances across all competitions for his current team so far in 2023 and his form, also rewarded with a first senior international appearance for Brazil in March, has unsurprisingly brought significant attention from Europe.

From the Premier League, Arsenal are firm admirers of the player and have held talks. Manchester United and Newcastle have additionally shown interest, but Roque’s own preference has also been Barcelona. Chelsea were another to contact his representatives.

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90min revealed back in February that Barcelona were leading the race for the talent.

Personal terms between the Catalans and Roque have already been in place for several months. But Athletico have been waiting for Barcelona to strike a deal with them regarding the transfer fee that would take the player to Spain.

The agreed price will be around the €40m mark, but the two clubs are yet to agree the breakdown of the payments. Barcelona, who continue to navigate troubling financial times, are seeking to spread out instalments as much as possible. There is, however, still an expectation that a deal will be struck.

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On this week's edition of Talking Transfers, part of the 90min podcast network, Toby Cudworth is joined by Graeme Bailey and Sean Walsh to discuss the latest transfer news. On the agenda is future of Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi's shock move to Inter Miami, Declan Rice's proposed Arsenal deal, Tottenham's summer plans and more.

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