Vitor Roque: Athletico Paranaense rule out summer Barcelona switch
- Athletico Paranaense have agreed a deal to sell Roque to Barcelona in January 2024
- Barcelona forked out £34m for his services
- Reports have suggested Barcelona could try bring the deal forward after selling Ousmane Dembele
Athletico Paranaense CEO Alexandre Mattos has insisted that Vitor Roque will not join Barcelona until January 2024.
Barcelona confirmed the £34m (€40m) signing of Roque in July, with the agreement seeing the teenage striker remain with his current employers until the end of the calendar year before making the move to Spain in January 2024.
Rumours have began to swirl in recent weeks that Barca could try to bring the move forward due to the sale of Ousmane Dembele to Paris Saint-Germain, with manager Xavi now potentially needing more reinforcements after the Frenchman's surprise departure.
However, Mattos has now shut down the speculation, insisting Roque will not leave the club until 2024.
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"There's no chance for Vitor Roque to leave and join Barcelona in August," he told Fabrizio Romano. "He will leave in January, that was the pact with Barca and it will be respected.
"We need him for the final 20 games and to qualify for the 2024 Copa Libertadores."
In a recent interview, Roque's agent discussed how his client is already preparing for his move to the Catalan club.
"Vitor is very calm, he will not have any anxiety. He is already doing Catalan classes, he wants to arrive speaking Catalan and Spanish. Everything will work out," agent Andre Cury said.
"When his signing was closed he was elated, but he is already focused on Athletico Paranaense. He will know how to wait for the right moment to become the main man at Barca and make history."
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