Xavi expects 18-year-old rookie to upgrade Barca's attack

Spain coach Xavi left open the possibility of Brazilian striker Vitor Roque pairing up with Robert Lewandowski when Barca meets Las Palmas in round 19 of La Liga.

Barca have completed the signing of Roque for $32 million from Atletico Paranaense, with a contract until the summer of 2031 and a release clause of more than $500 million. Roque, 18, is one of Brazil's most exciting talents, having scored six goals in 16 appearances for Cruzeiro and 33 goals in 93 appearances for Paranaense. Last week, the 18-year-old forward arrived in Barcelona for a medical and was officially unveiled as a new player.

Striker Vitor Roque debuted at Barca Club, Barcelona city, Spain on December 27. Photo: AFP

At a press conference ahead of the match against Las Palmas - the first match of 2024, Xavi hoped that Barca would be able to register Roque in time for La Liga. The Spanish coach stressed that he would take things step by step and avoid putting too much pressure on the 18-year-old. He said that Roque needed time to adapt to the new environment but was training well and ready to play.

"Roque can play perfectly alongside Lewandowski," Xavi added. "Roque can play wide or as a number nine. Roque will create competition for all the strikers in the team, with Lewandowski, Ferran Torres, Joao Felix, Raphinha and Lamine Yamal. That's positive."

Xavi said everyone at Barca would help Roque settle in Spain, including coordinator Bojan Krkic, compatriot Raphinha and centre-back Ronald Araujo, who speaks Portuguese. "Roque is young and we will help him," Xavi said. "We have video analysis sessions to show Roque exactly what we want from him in attack and defence. It's going very well."

In addition to the attack, Barca also want to strengthen the midfield as Gavi tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee and is out for the rest of the season. Girona's Aleix Garcia is one of the team's targets. Xavi likes Garcia, but has not spoken to the Spanish midfielder or any other player. The 43-year-old coach is in regular contact with president Joan Laporta and sporting director Deco to assess the club's finances and find suitable names.

After 18 rounds of La Liga, Barca have conceded 21 goals. When they won the championship last season, they only conceded 20 goals - the best defensive figure in the league, far ahead of the next team, Atletico, with 33 goals conceded. Barca have also only scored 34 goals from an expected goals (xG) of 41.38, meaning an xG efficiency of minus 7.38.

Cristhian Stuani scores the winning goal for Girona in a 4-2 win over Barca in the La Liga round of 16 at the Olympic Stadium, Barcelona on December 10. Photo: Reuters

Xavi is more concerned with defensive errors than the performance of his attacking line. "Last year we defended well, but we made a lot of mistakes at the beginning of the season," the Spain coach explained. "We often scored. And there were games where we scored two or three goals, but we couldn't win."

Hong Duy

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