Vitor Roque has had a tough first 12 months in Spanish football. He did not get a sniff at Barcelona, and he is now struggling at Real Betis – and to make matters worse, his playing time is expected to drop for the second half of the season.
On deadline day, Betis completed the big-money signing of Juan Hernandez from MLS side Columbus Crew. He joins Roque and Cedric Bakambu as striker options for Manuel Pellegrini, but given the outlay that was made to bring him in, the expectation is that he will soon be the starter.
Roque has seven goals in 30 appearances for Betis this season, which underlines the difficulties that he has had. This is not only bad news for Los Verdiblancos, but also Barcelona, who had hoped the move to the Benito Villamarin would lead to an increase in his transfer valuation. However, this has not been the case so far.
It’s worth noting that Betis have an option to buy Roque at the end of the season, although they do not intend to activate that. There is also a clause to extend the loan by an additional 12 months, but Sport say that this is also going to be snubbed.
It means that Roque would return to Barcelona in the summer, although he is not expected to remain in Catalonia as he is not counted on by head coach Hansi Flick. Instead, the club will look for another exit, with their ideal situation being to sell him on for close to the €30m that they paid to Athletico Paranaense back in 2023.
There is no doubt that Roque has had a very tough time in Spanish football over the last 12-13 months. He has been unable to show the true potential that he has, and as a result, it is expected to mean that he moves on in the summer.
