Barcelona signed the teenager from second-tier Ferro Carril for just €12 million £1m13m this week A promising, left-footed attacking player, Roman can play either through the middle or on the wing
He will slot into Barcelonas youth squad, Barca Atletic, having spurned River Plate to join the Catalan giants And his former club president, Daniel Pandolfi sees a lot of potential in the youngster
Lucas Roman has a lot of similarities to Leo Messi The Barca scouts saw that Obviously hes not at Messis level yet, but he has similar characteristics, Pandolfi said
Roman is not the first Argentine to be compared to Messi, and he certainly wont be the last But the fact that he is a left-footed right winger with undeniable ability on the ball makes the comparison a little too convenient
THE BIGGER PICTURE Hes also played under the stewardship of former Barca centre-back Javier Mascherano, only enhancing the links between Roman and the Catalan club