João Diogo Manteigas questions two Benfica signings: strange | OneFootball

João Diogo Manteigas voiced doubts about two of the signings made by Benfica in the last transfer window. The candidate for the Eagles’ presidency questioned the arrivals of Rafa Silva and Sidny Lopes Cabral, arguing that both raised sporting concerns and describing the two deals as “strange,” while pointing to different reasons for his reservations.

“A strange signing (Rafa Silva’s). And Sidny Lopes Cabral’s signing is also strange. Strange from a sporting point of view. First, there was the very relationship that Benfica and the fans already had with Rafa when he left. I remember perfectly the last game he played for Benfica before moving to Turkey, in an atmosphere of both sympathy and antipathy. He did not have a personality that won broad support among Benfica fans, and he also never did much to achieve that,” he began.

“It can be seen as an agreement he made with Benfica to help him resolve a situation he was going through in Turkey. Benfica also took the opportunity to carry out a financial operation with Besiktas. I doubt that he was one of José Mourinho’s priorities for the January market. As for Sidny, we are talking about six million euros for a player who was practically unknown until he arrived in Portuguese football,” he said in an interview with the newspaper A Bola.

Manteigas’s analysis comes at a time when Benfica are facing a more demanding financial context, after finishing the Liga Portugal Betclic in third place and missing out on qualification for the next edition of the Champions League. Missing out on Europe’s main club competition will represent a significant reduction in the club’s revenues, although it may also have a positive impact on some issues related to squad management.

In Sidny Lopes Cabral’s case, the player is already on his way out of the Luz. The Cape Verde international is in Turkey to undergo medical tests and formally sign a four-season contract with Trabzonspor, after all parties reached an agreement.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.