Vitor Roque is back in Brazil just a year after arriving at Barcelona, but his agent believes a return to Europe will happen again in the future.
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- Roque returned to Brazil with Palmeiras
- Striker struggled to make impact at Barcelona
- Agent says he could return to Camp Nou
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WHAT HAPPENED?
Roque's Barcelona nightmare came to an end last week after it was confirmed that the 20-year-old would return to Brazil to join Palmeiras for a €25 million fee. However, Roque's agent, Andre Cury, has already set his sights on the player moving back to one of Europe's top clubs in the next few years, with Barcelona seen as a realistic option.
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THE BIGGER PICTURE
In January 2024, Roque arrived at Barcelona from Athletico Paranaense for a €30m fixed fee, plus another €30m in variables, on a seven-and-a-half year contract with a €500m buyout clause. However, he made just 16 appearances, scoring twice, as Xavi preferred to play Robert Lewandowski as his No.9.
At the beginning of the 2024-25 season, the Catalans promoted Pau Victor to the first team, which consequently led to Roque being loaned out to Real Betis. After a bright start with Los Verdiblancos, the 20-year-old's form plunged drastically and Betis signed Cucho Hernandez in the winter transfer window.
With the Brazilian facing limited playing time once again, his agent facilitated a move to Palmeiras, allowing Barcelona to recover a significant portion of their initial investment, along with a 20 per cent sell-on clause.
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WHAT VITOR ROQUE'S AGENT SAID
"He is a great player, a great boy. Things didn’t go well, as we all thought," Cury told RAC1 (h/t Football Espana). "I think that arriving in winter did not do him any good. He is a very young boy. He is going to take this path of returning to Brazil for one or two seasons and will return to Europe. At 21 or 22 years old, I think he will be back.
“He could end up at Barca in a few years, he could go to any club in Europe. He had an offer from Tottenham three times higher and we opted for Barcelona because it was a good project.”
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WHAT NEXT FOR VITOR ROQUE?
Roque could feature at some point in Palmeiras' upcoming game, a Campeonato Paulista semi-final clash against Sao Paulo this weekend. The striker will also be looking to play himself back into Brazil's 2026 World Cup plans, having made just one senior appearance for his country so far.
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