FC Barcelona have a plethora of great talents and young starlets prepared for the future. The likes of Lamine Yamal, Gavi, Pau Cubarsi, Pedri, and Alejandro Balde are just a few such names. Even beyond that, Barcelona has a great list of aspiring individuals willing to carry on the legacy.
However, not every player is treated or given equal opportunities within the club. While the likes of Fermin Lopez have regained some semblance of importance within the team, others are still desperate for the attention that they believe they deserve.
This particular list of players includes the peculiar case of 19-year-old Vitor Roque. An arrival from Brazil in the winter transfer market, he was seen as a big financial bet made by Barcelona, despite the fact that they have multiple financial restrictions imposed on them, to help them both in the short-term and the long-term.
However, he has hardly had any importance at all this season. Barely playing close to 300 minutes throughout the entire campaign across all competitions, Xavi Hernandez’s faith in him seems to have been inconsistent. For his entourage, however, there are only two possibilities behind this.
According to the latest report by Jordi Cardero, Vitor Roque’s entourage believes that the first possibility behind his lack of playing time is the fact that he is currently undergoing a natural logical period of adaptation. This is something that has been highlighted previously as well, however, there is a second possibility according to the same entourage.
Unlike the first possibility, the second one is considered to be a worrying one. They believe that the only other reason behind Roque’s lack of playtime is the fact that Xavi might not trust him, nor does he count on him as a proper player in terms of importance to the squad in the near future as well.
Younger players around him have already begun to have breakout seasons, and while Roque’s arrival from South America to Europe will naturally require some getting accustomed to, it still is unsettling to see the lack of opportunities he has been given this season.
Moreover, with reports emerging that Xavi Hernandez may end up staying at Barcelona beyond this season, that might spell even more trouble for Roque. The Brazilian needs game time to improve and adapt, and while he has already showcased his talents in the few chances that he has been awarded, he needs more to truly come into his own.