Benfica continue their search to improve the club for next season and have been linked to various players, the latest being Villarreal left back Pervis Estupinan. The 24 year old Ecuadorian International has spent the past two seasons with Villarreal after joining from Watford in the summer of 2020 for €16.4M and has appeared in 73 games for the Spanish club across all competitions, failing to score a goal while providing four helpers.
Villarreal have an excess of full backs at the club and Estupinan's name has been thrown around as one of the fullbacks the club is looking to cash on during the summer. Villarreal are said to be looking for €18M for the players services while Benfica are open to a loan move with an option to buy at the conclusion of the season at lower price. Benfica recently added Serbian left back Mihailo Ristic as they move to bolster a position that should soon see their current starter Alex Grimaldo move on from the club.
Have Benfica's 2022/23 jerseys been leaked? Well according to the site Footy Headlines, they have the scoop on the clubs jerseys for the upcoming season on both the home and the away jerseys.
Benfica's home jersey will feature its distinctive red colour that we have all been accustomed to for years and years but may include a bit more white trim on the sleeves ends and thankfully will not include a collar. The clubs shirt sponsor continues to be Emirates while it's jersey maker will continue as Adidas
Benfica's away jersey is where the club tends to get a bit more creative and it looks like the club will be going with a yellow/gold colour that may include patterns that gel into the jersey. The club last used yellowish/gold jerseys during the 1998/99 season when the clubs sponsors for that season were Telecel, while Adidas was the jersey maker then as it is now.
Check out Footy Headlines potential jerseys for the 2022/23 season below:
Benfica announced the arrival of left back Mihailo Ristic earlier today and signed what looks to be Alex Grimaldo's replacement for four seasons, acquiring the 26 year old Serbian on a free transfer after Ristic spent the past three seasons with French club Montpellier. Ristic joins striker Petar Musa and new manager Roger Schmidt as the new faces that have arrived at the club since the end of the season.
Benfica are still in the market to acquire a variety of new players for various positions within the club as they look to completely make over a squad that has under performed the past few seasons. Benfica have been linked with a group of players from PSV, which is new manager Schmidt's old club as well as other Dutch league players familiar to Schmidt in his time in the Eredivisie League.
Benfica fans can expect at least an additional five to seven more player additions before the 2022/23 season commences but they will also be moving on from about the same amount of players if not more as the club looks to right the ship and compete for titles once again.
Benfica will officially announce the hiring of German manager Roger Schmidt at some point today as the 55 year old has arrived in Lisbon to officially sign his contract with the club. Schmidt will receive a two year deal with an option for a third year as he begins work on bringing the club back from it's current abyss.
The announcement of Schmidt's hiring was delayed by a week due to current Benfica President Rui Costa having tested positive for COVID-19 which made him unavailable to meet with his new manager and announce the hiring of Schmidt. Schmidt arrived this morning at Lisbon's Humberto Delgado airport and is eager commence his work at the club.
Benfica announced their third move of the off season acquiring Boavista striker Petar Musa for €5M and signing the 24 year old Croatian to at 5 year deal with an €80M buy out clause. The deal also includes Boavista acquiring 50% of left back Ricardo Mangas playing rights which will now give the Porto club full ownership of the player and they also also receive 50% of defensive midfielder Illija Vukotic playing rights.
Benfica expect to be busy this off season having already moved on from intern manager Nelson Verissimo and hiring his replacement in PSV's German manager Roger Schmidt. Benfica are now looking to bolster there midfield next, already being linked to a host of players from Europe and South America.
Our original Petar Musa transfer blog from April 2022 ➡️➡️➡️➡️➡️ HERE
Benfica's incoming manager Roger Schmidt is said to be looking for a new keeper at the club who can potentially take over the number one job next season and the latest keeper linked with the Lisbon side is former Arsenal number one and German national Bernd Leno according to reports from Portugal.
The 30 year old Leno had been Arsenal's number one choice since joining the London club in the summer of 2018 but fell into the backup role during this current season. Schmidt is a fan of Leno from their time together at Bayer Leverkusen but Arsenal's price tag of €10M may be too rich for Benfica to pay for a keeper who is not guaranteed to be the clubs starter.
Current Boavista center back and former Benfica midfielder Javi Garcia was taken by surprise by a report in the Portuguese daily A Bola last week that linked the 35 year old with a return to Benfica as part of incoming manager Roger Schmidt's coaching staff for next season. Javi confirmed that no one from Benfica has spoken to him about such a move and that he still has a contract for one more season at Boavista.
Javi appeared in 132 games across all competitions for Benfica in three seasons at the club from 2009 to 2012, winning one League Championship along with three Taca da Liga trophies before departing. Javi has spent time in his career at various clubs which include Real Madrid, Manchester City and Real Betis among a host of others. Javi joined Boavista on a free transfer in the summer of 2020.
Benfica closed out their 2021/22 campaign yesterday with a 2-0 victory over Pacos Ferreira in a game that saw many of the clubs academy players get a shot in the spotlight before closing the curtain on this campaign. Henrique Araujo scored a brace, earning player of the game honours and sending a message to incoming manager Roger Schmidt that he is ready for the big stage at Lisbon next season.
Benfica finish third in the league for the second straight season and will next to go through a playoff once again if they are to make the group stage of the Champions League. Benfica also failed to collect any hardware for the third straight season, their coming in the summer of 2019 when the captured the Portuguese Super Cup.
Benfica fans can expect many changes for next season as the club looks to right the ship under their new manager Schmidt. Benfica could see as many as ten players on the current roster depart in the summer with striker and current golden boot leader Darwin Nunez headlining the long list as the club looks for a fresh start.
Benfica fans the season is over but now a new kind of fun begins with all the summer moves in and out of the club and we can once again renew hope for the 2022/23 season..... all aboard.
Benfica's incoming manager Roger Schmidt is said to have recommended that the club look towards the Eredivisie for the potential replacement of Alex Grimaldo who looks set to depart the club for greener pastures this summer. Schmidt is interested in current AZ Alkmaar's left back and Dutch International Owen Wijndal as his starting right back for next season but Benfica are already in advance talks for other players to take over at the position.
Wijndal has come through the Alkmaar youth ranks and has represented the Netherlands in all age levels throughout competitions. The 22 year old was part of the Netherlands Euro 2020 squad and appeared as a substitute off the bench twice during the competition. Wijndal has appeared in 42 games for Alkmaar across all competitions this season, scoring once while setting up twelve helpers.
Benfica have made contact with Czech club Slavia Prague to discuss their current 24 year old right back Alexander Bah, as the club looks to improve at a position that was one of their weaker links this season. The Danish international has spent the past season and a half with Prague were he has appeared in 68 games across all competitions, scoring seven goals and setting up sixteen.
Benfica spent the season with a variety of different players at the position from Gilberto to Andre Almeida to Diogo Goncalves to Valentino Lazaro but were unable to find a clear cut number one with Gilberto earning the most appearances in the role. Benfica would be expected to spend between €7M to €10M for Prague to let go of Bah who is signed until the summer of 2025.
Benfica have made an agreement with Boavista to land 24 year old Croatian striker Petar Musa after the clubs are said to have made an agreement that involves cash and players according to reports from Portugal. Benfica have been in negotiations for Musa for quite some time and the deal finally looks to be closed.
Musa was on loan from Sparta Prague with a buy option for a reported €3.5M which Boavista have activated. Benfica will give Boavista €5M for Musa along with the rights to Ilija Vukotic who is currently already at Boavista on loan and the 50% of the rights of left back Ricardo Mangas that the club still owned.
Musa has had a great first season in Portugal, appearing in 35 games across all competitions, scoring 12 goals while adding 4 assists. Musa is Benfica's first signing for the 2022/23 season as the club looks to get back on track after a string of disappointing seasons that has seen them go trophy less.
Benfica continue to be linked to players currently applying their trade in the Eredivisie which is the current league of incoming manager Roger Schmidt. The latest players linked to Benfica are two of Schmidt's own PSV players, Mario Gotze and Ibrahim Sangare who have patrolled the midfield for the Dutch side for the past two seasons.
The 29 year old Gotze is a former World Cup champion with Germany and has an affordable buyout clause reported at €4M. Gotze has appeared in 74 games for PSV across all competitions, scoring 18 goals while setting up the same amount. Gotze had spent all of his playing career in Germany between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund before joining PSV on a free transfer in the summer of 2020 and has spent the majority of his career playing in an attacking midfield role.
Sangare who is 24 years old also joined PSV in the summer of 2020 from French club Toulouse for €7M and would be a more costly acquisition for Benfica, some saying in the €20M-€25M range. Sangare who plays in the defensive midfield role, has appeared in 85 games for PSV across all competitions, scoring five goals while also setting up five. Sangare has also been linked with richer sides Arsenal, Tottenham and Leicester City.
The continued links that Benfica have with various players no matter who they end up actually obtaining, does mean one thing, expect big changes at the club for next season.
Benfica have added RKC Waalwijk defender Ahmed Touba to their summer transfer wish list according to reports from French publication Foot Mercato. Incoming new manager Roger Schmidt is famaliar with the 24 year old center back from their encounters in the Dutch Eredivisie over the past two seasons. Schmidt has a plan for Benfica and is looking to add the right players to his incoming system for next season.
Touba who plays internationally for Algeria was born in France and spent his youth in the Belgian football system, spending time at Club Brugge, OH Leuven and FC Brugge before moving to Dutch side Waalwijk in the summer of 2020. Touba has appeared in 60 games across all competitions for Waalwijk, scoring three goals while setting up an additional two. Touba's addition would more then likely mean the departure of one of the clubs senior center backs in Jan Vertonghen or Nicolas Otamendi.
Benfica President Rui Costa is said to want Braga winger Ricardo Horta as a reinforcement for next season at the club according to reports from Portugal. Benfica's interest in Horta is not new but with the club set for a major overhaul of players this summer, he is a player currently on the clubs radar.
Horta who is 27 years old came up through Benfica's youth system along with brother Andre Horta but did not make any appearances for the main squad before departing to Setubal in the summer of 2013. Horta then made a move to Spanish side Malaga in 2014 before a season long loan sent him to Braga in 2016 a move that became permanent in the summer of 2017.
Horta has had a sensation 2021/22 campaign in which he has scored 21 goals across all competitions including 17 in league play while providing 10 assists. Horta has appeared in 277 games since joining Braga across all competitions, scoring 91 goals which is the clubs all time high while adding 48 assists. Braga President Antoine Salvador is said to want €20M to move Horta but Benfica will work to lower that price tag by adding some of the clubs youngsters to any future deal.
Roger Schmidt, Benfica's unofficial new manager is said to have already been making requests of the club for new player acquisitions during the summer and one of those players according to reports out of Portugal is current Arminia Bielefeld keeper Stefan Ortega. The 29 year old shot stopper becomes a free agent in the summer and Schmidt is interested in Ortega becoming the clubs new number one keeper taking over the spot currently held by another German born keeper Odysseas Vlachodimos.
Ortega has spent the past five seasons at Bielefeld, were he has appeared in 218 games across all competitions while maintaining 68 clean sheets in the process. Ortega is said to have other interested suitors in German clubs Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen but both clubs would be looking at Ortega in a back up role which may just give Benfica the upper hand in negotiations for the keeper.
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.jpg "Benfica jerseys for the 2022/23 season leaked")
