“He didn’t have an easy life” - Barcelona flop Vitor Roque names Real Madrid star as his role model following La Liga struggles
Barcelona loanee Vitor Roque has stated that Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr has been a source of motivation amid his struggles at the Catalan club. Roque compared Vini’s early struggles at Los Blancos with his at Barcelona, saying the latter is now reaping the rewards of his persistency at Real Madrid.
Vitor Roque joined Barca from Brazilian side Athletico Paranaense for a reported fee of €30 million in January 2024. However, he failed to find his groove at La Blaugrana and spent most of his time at the club as an unused substitute. He fell out of favor with Hansi Flick and was eventually loaned to Real Betis in the summer on a season-long loan.
Now reflecting on his time at the Catalan club, Roque told ESPN (via Tribal Football):
"There is a lot of pressure. But you have to keep going, have mental strength and keep working with a lot of humility so that things go well. Sometimes my representatives use Vinícius as an example of how to be persistent, fight for your space and I completely agree. He's a player that didn't have an easy life when he arrived [at Madrid]. Today he is reaping the rewards and I am very happy that he is experiencing this great moment, which he deserves."
Vitor Roque has scored five goals and provided one assist in 19 appearances for Real Betis this season.
Vitor Roque says he fulfilled his childhood dream by playing for Barcelona
While Vitor Roque has had an underwhelming time at La Blaugrana, he said that playing for the club is his childhood dream. He also reckoned that it is the dream of every player to play at a club like Barca.
"The truth is that I arrived [at Barcelona] very happy," he said (via ESPN). "Fulfilling my childhood dream, which was always my dream to be there, to be experiencing Champions League moments, to be wearing this shirt. When I got there [to Barcelona], I realised my dream of playing in Europe."
"I believe that almost every player's dream is to play in Europe, even more so at a club like Barcelona. Seeing players in the video game and playing alongside them is incredible. I didn't imagine it would happen so quickly in my life."
Vitor Roque scored two goals for Barca in 16 appearances across competitions and played a total of 353 minutes for the club.