Vitor Roque has come out again and 'wet' about his disappointing time at FC Barcelona. The Brazilian striker arrived in Barcelona in the winter transfer market last year as one of the great promises of world football to reinforce the forward line, but his desire to succeed wearing the Barça shirt quickly vanished when he was not taken into account by either Xavi Hernández or Hansi Flick.
The Brazilian landed in Spain from Athletico Paranaense in exchange for 30 million euros plus another 30 in variables. However, in his first months in the European elite he was unable to convince the former Barça coach, who barely gave him 353 minutes in 16 official matches in which he was only able to score two goals. During the preseason, he was also not taken into account by Flick, so after many negotiations, he agreed to go to Real Betis on loan with an option to buy.
Roque is disappointed with Barça
The 19-year-old player was once again part of the Brazilian under-20 squad, and after the 'canarinha' victory over Mexico (2-1), he spoke to the media in the mixed zone. In front of the press, Roque was able to avoid showing his disappointment for everything he experienced during his time with the Blaugrana squad. "I had some opportunities, but not in the way I thought. Now I have a clear head," began the attacker, who later 'torn' the club's board.
"I think it was difficult in general. I thought it was going to be different, both in the way I was treated and in the way I played, as well as in the way the board spoke to me. But it's over now, I'm happy to have the opportunity at Betis and to wear the national team shirt again," said Vitor, who is looking forward to his new challenge in a team where he will be able to have minutes and regularity to show the Catalans that they were wrong about him. 'Tigrinho' made his debut under Manuel Pellegrini at the Santiago Bernabéu, where the Verdiblancos fell 2-0 to Real Madrid, playing the final 33 minutes of the match.
Roque's mental health problems in Barcelona
On the other hand, Vitor confessed that his situation in the Blaugrana squad took its toll on him mentally, problems that he solved thanks to psychological help. "I always went to therapy, I always had a mental coach. He has always helped me, since I was 16 I also went through some obstacles. He always helped me," Roque confessed, adding that "today I try to do it too, he has helped me a lot to overcome several obstacles. Being in Europe is very difficult. I left very young and immediately went to a big club."
According to reports in the Spanish press, the attacker even cried in training, something that did not come to light publicly, but which was extremely hard for him. "Sometimes you don't see what's inside, the way people treat each other. Sometimes my head doesn't feel right, I try to work on my psychology as much as possible. But sometimes it's difficult, it's hard. Sometimes the journalists themselves don't understand, they just talk about it from the field. If it's not right, they'll judge it and they won't see everything that's behind it. But now I have a calm mind, that's the most important thing," he concluded.