Espanyol intensify move for Benfica's De Tomas

Spanish side Espanyol have their eyes on out of favour Benfica striker Raul de Tomas as the Spanish club look to move out of the basement of the Spanish La Liga and avoid relegation this season. De Tomas who joined Benfica in the summer for one of the highest transfer fees paid by the club at €20M has yet to find his groove in the Portuguese League and has become Bruno Lage's fifth choice up front behind starters Carlos Vinicius and Chiquinho. While last seasons leading scorer Seferovic is the clubs first choice off the bench followed of late by youngster Jota. De Tomas who wants playing time would welcome a move back to his native land but Benfica are reluctant to let the striker depart on a loan move as they look to recover some if not all of the cost of the player from Real Madrid this summer. De Tomas who has yet to score for the club in league play after appearing in seven games has a total of three goals across all competitions in 1042 minutes of action, which is a goal every 347 minutes of play. Benfica are hoping that De Tomas finds his form with the club but are ready to listen to any intriguing offers for the 25 year old striker and move on.