Athletico Paranaense have rejected a £22 million bid for Vitor Roque with Arsenal and Newcastle United among the striker’s Premier League suitors, agent Andre Cury tells Globo Esporte.
Gone are the days when Claudio Cacapa was the closest Newcastle came to a bit of Samba magic on Tyneside. Bruno Guimaraes and Joelinton have struck up quite the partnership under Eddie Howe at St James’ Park.
Down south, Arsenal too have their fair share of Portuguese-speakers. And with technical director Edu Gaspar constantly scouring South America for the continent’s best and brightest, claims from Goal that Arsenal have already opened talks with 17-year-old Vitor Roque should come as no real surprise.
The Gunners are usually at the front of the queue when the latest Brazilian wonderkid appears on the scene. And with extensive competition in the shape of Newcastle, Chelsea, Barcelona, Real Madrid and co for Roque’s signature, Edu’s extensive contact book could come in very handy indeed.
Arsenal are in talks to sign Brazil U20 starlet Vitor Roque
“We have already had offers, but they were refused. There was an English club, a Spanish club, and an Italian one,” explains Cury, who played a role in the deal that took Gabriel Martinelli to the Emirates back in 2019.
“We got more or less an offer of 25 million euros (for Roque). We immediately rejected it, because I believe that the player has a higher value than that.
“The time (to leave) is when the right club arrives. One which has a great project, reaches the price-tag, and everyone leaves this negotiation satisfied.”
According to AS, Arsenal are ‘willing to do anything’ to get Roque through the door. Whether that extends to meeting Athletico’s £40 million price-tag for a player who doesn’t even turn 18 until later this month, however, remains to be seen.
Roque’s ‘new Ronaldo’ exists for a reason, however. He scored six goals in eight games as Brazil triumphed in the recent South America U20 Championships.
“(Roque is) demonstrating all the physical, mental and technical characteristics to play for a big club in Europe,” Cury adds. He works a lot physically and contributes a lot to the team; a modern player.
“The big ‘number nines’ in Europe are of advancing ages, like (Karim) Benzema, (Edinson) Cavani, and (Robert) Lewandowski. They will open that gap for these players.
“Vitor Roque is going to have a great future in Europe. Mainly because of his hard work and strong mentality.”
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