There has been a flurry of activity surrounding Barcelona in recent days with most of it having to do with departures from the club. With less than 10 days left in the transfer window, the club is ramping up their transfer activity.
Ilkay Gundogan is on his way to rejoin Manchester City on a free transfer. Barcelona are trying to shift out some deadwood in the squad like Clement Lenglet which will help them register Dani Olmo for La Liga.
Barcelona have also been linked with new signings for the club like Federico Chiesa of Juventus and Rafael Leao of AC Milan. Whilst the latter is extremely unrealistic, there is a good chance the club will sign the former this summer.
Now, as per reliable Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano, Real Betis are closing in on a deal to sign 19-year-old Barcelona forward Vitor Roque. He adds that the deal will be a simple loan with no option to buy for the Spanish club.
The final details of the deal are being discussed today. Roque has personally wanted to join Betis, rejecting an offer from Sporting CP and other interested clubs. It’s still not clear if the 19-year-old will have a ‘fear clause’ inserted into his loan deal that would prevent him from playing against Barcelona.
Whilst this might not be what Barcelona wanted, it is a deal that could have massive upside for them in the long term. Should Roque go on to have a good season with Betis, his valuation would increase and there is a chance that he could have a future at the club.
The most important thing about staying in La Liga is that Roque would get a year to adapt to the Spanish top flight. With more experience and better maturity, he could still have a future at Barcelona and it all depends on how he develops.
