Barcelona have been known to scour the South American market for exciting young prospects, and with new Sporting Director Deco now in place, these efforts are expected to be ramped up in the coming years.
Vitor Roque will be joining in 2024, although the club’s finances will determine whether he will be in Xavi Hernandez’s squad for the second half of the 2023-24 season, or the start of the 2024-25 season.
Another Brazilian teenager hopes to join Roque at Barcelona in the next few years, and that is Estevao “Messinho” Willian. The 16-year-old is considered to be one of the top talents in South America, and as he revealed in an interview with MD, he dreams of joining the Catalan giants.
“My biggest dream is to play for Barcelona, who are one of the best clubs in the world. I was born watching Neymar, Messi and Suárez play at Barcelona and that’s the dream I have.
“I was very happy when I heard Vitor Roque was going to Barcelona. He’s a guy I get along with very well, we’re friends. We have already played together. I was very happy for him. Who knows if one day we will get to play together at Barcelona.”
Estevao would not be able to join Barcelona until the summer of 2025 at the earliest, which could be a good thing in terms of putting together the money to bankroll at deal with Palmeiras. The situation will be one to watch over the next 12-18 months.
