Al Ittihad ‘could return’ after Benfica reject €15m bid for Leandro Barreiro, Domingos Soares Oliveira involved | OneFootball

Benfica have rejected a €15 million bid from Al Ittihad for Leandro Barreiro, Record reports.

The Lisbon club showed no willingness to negotiate for the Luxembourg international, a regular starter for Marco Silva at the start of this season.

Al Ittihad were prepared to invest that sum, yet it did not sway Benfica’s hierarchy. It remains to be seen whether the Saudi side will return during this transfer window.

The pursuit comes with a twist. Jens Wissing, formerly Roger Schmidt’s assistant at Benfica, now leads Al Ittihad and is keen to work with Barreiro again. The midfielder arrived during Schmidt’s time at the Luz.

Despite the German coach’s interest, the board led by Rui Costa have no intention of easing a departure. Al Ittihad’s CEO is Domingos Soares Oliveira and the club’s initial move met a firm response from Benfica.

Barreiro has earned trust in Silva’s plans and is viewed as an important squad member. His early-season performances have underlined his value to the team.

Source: Glorioso 1904

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”