António Silva called up to the squad, but star leaves Benfica teammate out | OneFootball

On the afternoon of Thursday, November 7, António Silva was called up to the national team. However, the presence of the number 4 thus denied a Benfica Benfica teammate the opportunity to represent the national side. This information was revealed by Roberto Martínez, to explain why Tomás Araújo was not called up.

At the press conference where he announced the names of the 26 players selected—which includes António Silva—Roberto Martínez was questioned about the absence of Tomás Araújo. “First of all, it’s great news for us,” began the national coach, emphasizing that it is good news to have the defender available again.

Next, the Spanish manager stated that it is essential for the player to continue his development with the Eagles, under José Mourinho’s guidance: “Tomás has already made his debut for the National Team and it is very important that he continues to play in important matches.”

“He is part of our preliminary list, but in such a short period where we are repeating opponents, we felt it made more sense to continue with António Silva,” added Roberto Martínez, explaining his decision to leave the young Portuguese defender out of the squad.

It should be noted that Portugal will play their last two qualifying matches for the World Cup, which will take place next year. The first match will be against Ireland and, a few days later, the Portuguese team will play at Estádio do Dragão, hosting Armenia.

Tomás Araújo—valued at 32 million euros—has regained his starting status in recent matches. This season, the number 44 has played a total of 14 official matches: eight in Liga Portugal Betclic, three in the Champions League, one in the Portuguese Cup, one in the League Cup, and one in Liga Portugal Meu Super. In the 763 minutes he spent on the pitch, the defender scored one goal.

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