Vitor Roque remains the chosen one as Xavi pushes Barça for a new No.9

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Vitor Roque remains the chosen one as Xavi pushes Barça for a new No.9

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The Brazilian striker is the first choice option but not the cheapest

Xavi Hernández is clear. Barcelona need to strengthen with a new '9' and the name at the top of his list of preferences is that of Vitor Roque, the attacking sensation of South American football at just 18 years of age who plays for Ath. Paranaense.

The Barça coach has carefully observed the evolution of 'Tigrinho' in recent months. And he has liked what he has seen. The player, who has impressed in the Copa Libertadores, creates consensus at the club, who see him potentially as a new Luis Suarez, and there is the conviction that, in the medium term, he will become a striker of reference. At the moment, at the age of 18, he is making a difference in South America.

Xavi likes the way Vitor Roque plays. The Brazilian has a keen eye for goal and is a good finisher (he finishes indistinctly with both feet). To this, we must add the fact that he is a '9' with a great deal of mobility, who can act in all three roles of the attack if necessary and who, outside the box, has the capacity for association and a collective understanding of football as another strong point.

DIFFERENT TO LEWY

He is a striker with a different profile to Robert Lewandowski, who is the absolute holder of the position, and who, therefore, would offer very interesting tactical variants for a team, such as Xavi Hernandez's Barça, which pivots and grows on good ball control.

The club already knows Xavi's preference for Vitor Roque. And, from here, it will be up to Mateu Alemany and Jordi Cruyff to structure an operation that, like all those that Barça will carry out next summer, will be conditioned by the margin of Financial Fair Play that La Liga grants.

If Barça have not sat down to negotiate with Ath. Parananese (who are already aware of the Blaugrana's interest in their rising star) over a fee, it is because, as of today, there is no definition of the final position that the body presided over with an iron fist by Javier Tebas will take. 

Barça know that Arsenal and Chelsea are pushing hard, but the player and his family and camp (his agent is André Cury, who was the executive of the Blaugrana technical secretariat for a decade in South America) are the negotiating ace. 

BEFORE U20 WORLD CUP

The ideal scenario, but which nobody can be sure will be achieved right now, would be to be able to face the final negotiations between clubs before the U20 World Cup, which kicks off on 20 May in Argentina, where Vitor Roque will be the '9' of the Seleçao, as he did at the South American Championship in Colombia, where he won the title and the tournament's top scorer in February.

Reinforcing the '9' position is key for Xavi, who, since the departure of Memphis Depay to At. Madrid in the January market, has had to manage the entire second half of the season without a natural replacement for 'Lewa'. This situation has meant, for example, that the Pole has not had enough rest and has had to play some matches with back problems.

The Barça coach is well aware of the financial reality of the club and the difficulty going into a vital recruitment window, where the technical secretariat hopes to make a second leap in quality after the very positive experience of last summer. 

Vitor Roque is the name of consensus among the technical staff and the first option for Xavi on the list of reinforcements for the '9' position. However, if there is no margin for signing, Barça will look to find another striker who will arrive as a free agent. In this scenario, the best positioned is Aubameyang, who already knows the Blaugrana dressing room and is crazy to return. The Gabonese striker will be pushing to be able to terminate his contract with Chelsea at the end of the current season.

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