Chelsea left hanging after offering to ‘treble salary’ of Brazilian wonderkid

Barcelona are reportedly the frontrunners to snap up Brazilian wonderkid Vitor Roque this summer from Athletico Paranaense despite offering the 18-year-old three times less per year than Chelsea, PSG and Manchester United in wages. The recently capped Brazil international has chosen to remain faithful to Barcelona’s project despite attempted hijacks from elsewhere.

Chelsea, PSG and Man Utd are said to have offered Roque an annual salary of £8.5m while Barcelona have only placed £3m on the table. However, all hope is not lost for the trio yet as according to Mundo Deportivo Barcelona could lose Roque to a European rival, after being issued with a 24-hour ultimatum by his parent club to send them the necessary documents required to complete the transfer.

An agreement in principle is believed to have been in place since last month though the move has not been completed as of yet. Barca and Athletico Paranaense had reportedly initially agreed on a transfer fee of £30m plus £8.5m in add-ons, though Mundo claim this has since been adjusted to a £25m base fee and £17m worth of extras including a further instalment of £4.2m if the player wins the Ballon d’Or in the future.

But if Barca doesn’t send all the required documents over in the coming hours then Athletico will start contemplating offers from other European giants.

However, SPORT claim Roque has his heart set on joining Barcelona and not allowing him to move to his dream club would surely cause the Brazilian side serious problems.

Roque is one of the most highly thought of young forwards in the game today and is already showing signs of being a future world-class talent. So far this season, he has bagged seven goals from 13 appearances in the Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A and was recently given a call-up to Brazil’s senior national team.

He was brought on as a 65th-minute substitute in a friendly match against Morocco on March 25 by interim head coach Ramon Menezes in a 2-1 defeat at the Ibn Batouta Stadium in Morocco. 

He has also played 11 times for the under-20s side during which time he racked up eight goals. His deal at Paranaense runs until 2027. They signed him last season after activating the £3.8m release clause in his contract with parent club Cruzeiro Esporte Clube and are now set to cash in a hefty profit on their investment.