Real Betis director firmly denies reports of Barcelona loanee asking to leave club – ‘Totally false’ | OneFootball

The speculation surrounding Barcelona forward Vitor Roque’s potential move from Real Betis to Palmeiras continues to gather momentum.

It must be noted that reports from the Brazilian media have suggested for weeks that Roque could be transferred to Palmeiras before the end of February, but Betis have denied these rumours.

Now, Betis’ sporting director Manu Fajardo has also dismissed any claims that negotiations are underway with Barcelona to terminate Roque’s loan agreement early.

What did he say?

Before Real Betis’ match against Real Sociedad, Fajardo was directly asked whether Roque had requested to leave the club. He made it clear that neither the player, his representatives, nor Barcelona had made any such request.

“No, no, no, nothing. Neither Vitor Roque has asked for it, nor his entourage, nor Barcelona, ​​with whom we have a very close relationship. Nor have I, as Betis sporting director, told him that he has to leave,” he said as quoted by Mundo Deportivo.

Vitor Roque is wanted by Palmeiras this month. (Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images)

He also reaffirmed that Betis have a strong relationship with Barcelona and insisted that there had been no internal discussions about ending Roque’s loan spell prematurely.

“All of that is totally false. Vitor has played a lot of minutes this season, he is one more in the squad, his teammates are pushing hard and now it is his turn to push hard too,” he added.

Barcelona are optimistic

Despite these statements, sources close to Barcelona, indicate that Betis might eventually agree to let Roque leave. The reasoning behind this is financial—if Roque plays fewer than 50% of Betis’ matches, the club could avoid paying a €1.5 million penalty.

However, up to this point, the Brazilian forward has featured in 97% of Betis’ games, with only 14 league matches remaining in the season.

Roque’s recent game time has raised questions about his future at the club. He has started on the bench in the last four league matches, and in last Thursday’s Conference League fixture against Ghent, he did not play at all.

However, since joining Betis, he has been available for 31 out of 32 official matches, missing just one due to injury.

He has played at least 45 minutes in 59% of those appearances and started in 19 games. With 14 league fixtures still to be played and limited attacking options in the Conference League, Betis’ decision regarding Roque’s immediate future remains uncertain.