Every year, we get to watch Benfica making at least one big sale. Just in the past couple of seasons, we’ve seen the likes of Gonçalo Ramos, Enzo Fernández and Darwin Núñez leave the Lisbon side for over €65m each.
Newspaper Record today shares a story claiming the Eagles have already decided the star who is leaving this summer, and that’s Antonio Silva. The 20-year-old defender has been showing big potential and is the chosen one to be turned into a big profit in the next transfer window.
When speaking of potential destinations for the centre-back, Manchester United once again get a mention, as the Red Devils are believed to be in a competition against Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint Germain.
It’s said those clubs are some of the ‘sharks’ who are ‘attentive’ to the player and have been monitoring his evolution, with United having officials watch almost every Benfica match.
Silva is protected by a €100m release clause. Benfica don’t seem to have set a price so far, as they’re just ‘planning a significant sale’, and it will all depend on how much Manchester United and others put on the table.
It’s well known that the Eagles have another young talent in the squad, midfielder João Neves. Still, Record claims that the Lisbon club already decided he’s the one who should be kept for longer.
Manchester United are also interested in the midfielder, but would find it a lot more difficulty to get that one, especially because he’s protected by a €120m release clause. It sounds like there’s very little room for a double deal, unless the Red Devils are able to put something around €200m on the table.
