Fulham have reportedly submitted a bid for Benfica defender Morato.
According to journalist Bruno Andrade, the Whites put between €10m and €12m on the table for the signing.
Benfica, however, immediately turned that down. They returned Fulham’s bid by saying they’d like €50m for his sale.
As pointed out by Andrade, that was basically a message from the Eagles saying they don’t want to negotiate the player’s exit this summer.
The journalist claims it’s ‘obvious’ that no one would pay that much for Morato right now, and that’s said to be just a play from Benfica to avoid the defender’s departure.
The Eagles spent €7.6m to sign the Brazilian from São Paulo in 2019. He’s currently valued by Transfermarkt at €13m, and protected with a contract until 2027.
It’s unknown whether Fulham will push a little stronger for the signing, and they could do so in case they think Benfica are bluffing about his price.
However, with the Portuguese media making it clear the Eagles don’t want the negotiation, perhaps Marco Silva’s side should start focusing on some other targets.
