Nelson Semedo: Benfica place €80m clause on right back
Bad news for all the clubs who have been following Nelson Semedo recently. The Benfica right-back is set to sign a contract extension with the club.
The new release clause? €80m, shouts Friday’s edition of Record.
The list of interested sides is quite respectable. Arsenal, Manchester United, Inter Milan, Barcelona and Bayern Munich are all following him.
Arsenal won’t be interested now Hector Bellerin has renewed, which leaves Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United. Antonio Valencia is currently first choice right back for Mourinho and he’s been doing well.
But with Matteo Darmian struggling to maintain top form, there’s been an assumption a right back is wanted.
Several have been been linked, including Monaco’s Fabinho, currently playing in midfield. With Manchester United regularly scouting Benfica, Nelson Semedo has been an obvious link.
The newspaper is already saying that Nelson Semedo could be Benfica’s most expensive fullback sale ever. He would have to surpass Fabio Coentrão, who was sold to Real Madrid in 2011 for €30m.
Benfica president Luis Filipe Vieira has no intention to sell the player unless that figure is clearly beaten.
If Manchester United offered €40m for Nelson Semedo, it’s unlikely it would be refused.
Record also mentions the possibility of Bayern Munich going back to pay even more for a Benfica player this time. They signed Renato Sanches in the summer so there’s a line of dialogue.
This is clearly a campaign to see another player leaving for a record amount.
The football market may have gone crazy in the past few years, with prices rocketing. That said, we’re probably still far from an €80m 23-year-old right-back.
Nelson Semedo isn’t considered one of the world’s best fullbacks and despite being young, he’s not exactly a youth talent. If Mourinho is interested, and convinces Manchester United to make a move, it would be for far less.
