Leeds United midfielder Marc Roca will be a ‘total success’ if he returns to La Liga with Real Betis this summer, according to his former Espanyol coach Quique Sanchez Flores.
While undeniably disappointing during what increasingly looks like being his first and also last season at Leeds United, it’s not that long since Bayern Munich were fighting off reported interest from Arsenal to sign a player who had been labelled the second coming of Sergio Busquets by some after helping Spain win the U21 European Championships back in 2019.
Perhaps this was just a classic case of a player being wrong for a certain league; Marc Roca, a cerebral, cultured footballer struggling to last the pace in the hustle and bustle of the Premier League.
And do not be surprised to see the 26-year-old playmaker – should he return to Spain with Real Betis – rediscover the form that saw him catch the eye of Bayern Munich in the first place. The slower pace of La Liga football better suited to Roca’s brand of tidy, probing passing style.
Marc Roca leaving Leeds United for Real Betis
“(Roca will be) a total success,” Sanchez Flores, the two-time Watford boss, tells El Desmarque. “He is going to add a lot, it seems to me that he is going to adapt to Manuel Pellegrini’s philosophy well.
“He is a player with an important role with the ball. Very organized, he has very good vision, and knows (how to play) the transition between defence and the striker.”
“He can complement anyone. If you play him as a ‘number eight’ he plays as an ‘eight’. If you play him as a ‘number six’ he plays as a ‘six’. He is a very good player, it doesn’t matter who is next to him.”
According to AS, Real Betis have agreed a deal which will see Roca arrive on loan, with a £10 million option-to-buy clause in his contract. The Estadio Benito Villamarin has been home to many a player looking to revive their careers, and Sanchez Flores cannot see any reason why Roca cannot emulate the success of Nabil Fekir, Sergio Canales and Gio Lo Celso.
“We saw a kid with a lot of personality (at Espanyol). Very obedient and capable,” Sanchez Flores adds. “He has spent his whole life between Spain, England and Germany.
“Always in the elite and in good teams.”
Betis must free up space in their wage bill before they can officially announce Roca’s arrival, however. A deal to take defender Luiz Felipe to West Ham for around £17 million would do the trick.
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