Ronaldinho’s Son Still Hasn’t Officially Signed For FC Barcelona

The son of FC Barcelona legend Ronaldinho – Joao Mendes – still hasn’t officially signed for the club according to a report.

The youngster, who turned 18 at the weekend, went on trials with the Blaugrana in mid-January.

At a Mundo Deportivo gala earlier this month, Ronaldinho appeared to confirm that his son had been signed by the club by saying: “I am never outside the club. Barcelona is part of my life. Wherever I go I take Barcelona with me. With the arrival of my son at Barcelona I will be more present than ever.”

Barca president Joan Laporta also talked as though the landing of the Rio-born teenager was a done deal, noting how “the pressure that the boy has is very great, because Ronaldinho was one of the best in history.”

“The son has pressure, but it is the job of our coaches to develop his skills,” Laporta added.

On the same day that the Catalans’ first team drew 2-2 with Manchester United, SPORT reported that Mendes made his Barca debut with a mixture of the Juvenil A and B team that took on a Red Devils counterpart.

Around 10 days later, however, the same daily newspaper claimed that Mendes is still waiting to sign for the Juvenil A when running an article on the former Cruzeiro academy product watching his father make his own debut in the King’s League.

Mendes has reportedly noticed that his new teammates operate at a high pace, and was said to be a little out of rhythm when featuring against United.

The Juvenil A team face AZ Alkmaar in the knockout stages of the Youth League on Wednesday, but Mendes isn’t likely to feature.

As said, Mendes was present at the Cupra Arena in Barcelona on Sunday to watch his father make his first appearance in Gerard Pique’s King’s League.

The Brazilian icon’s new team Porcinos FC lost on penalties to PIO FC after drawing 0-0 in regular time but still remain top of the amateur seven-a-side championship.

This puts them on track to feature at Camp Nou in a Final Four event on March 26, and Mendes will also harbor hopes of one day entertaining the crowd there like his father in his 2000s heyday.