Official! Centre-back rejects Benfica deal, Saudi move confirmed | OneFootball

It’s official. After the departure of Cristina Martín-Prieto, Benfica announced another farewell. Christy Ucheibe’s contract will expire at the end of this month, and she will leave the Clube da Luz after six seasons. The Nigerian defender was one of the players who had been at Luz the longest.

In a statement, the Eagles highlighted the African centre-back’s sense of commitment. “Christy matured in football and in her commitment to the team’s daily routines, achieved international status with Nigeria – being crowned African champion in 2024 – and created great empathy with Benfica supporters, on and off the pitch. At 25, the Nigerian international is leaving, emotionally, the working group she always regarded as family and makes a point of saying that she hopes to return to the glorious club one day,” it can be read.

It is known that Benfica offered Ucheibe a renewal proposal, but the player turned it down as she has a more financially advantageous offer from a club in Saudi Arabia, confirming an Exclusive from our newspaper.

The first exploratory contacts took place in recent weeks, with intermediaries linked to the Saudi market trying to understand the conditions needed to move forward with a possible transfer. The Arab salary should end up convincing the 25-year-old player.

For the red team, Christy Ucheibe made a total of 179 appearances and scored 11 goals. In addition, she was a standout figure in the six league titles won, as well as two Portuguese Cups, five League Cups and two Super Cups.

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