Benfica's new signing arrives soon to go straight into Marco Silva's XI | OneFootball

Benfica are about to enter a decisive week in the transfer market, with Marco Silva waiting for developments to close one of the dossiers considered a priority by the club’s hierarchy. António Silva’s move to Bournemouth is practically completed and forces the board to speed up the arrival of a new centre-back.

The Portugal international is still expected to wear the Eagles shirt against St. Gallen, in what could be his official farewell at the Luz before heading to the Premier League. The deal between Benfica and Bournemouth is agreed at €25 million, plus €5 million in add-ons.

Despite the return of Tomás Araújo, who is already back among Marco Silva’s options after the World Cup, and the presence of Clément Lenglet, the coaching staff consider it essential to sign an experienced centre-back who can immediately compete for a place in the starting XI. Gabriel Índio, who turns 18 this Sunday, is still seen as a prospect for the future and should mainly gain competitive rhythm with the B team.

Rui Costa is not even ruling out the possibility of signing two centre-backs if the market presents opportunities considered advantageous. However, the priority is to quickly find a direct replacement for António Silva. The choice could fall on Josip Sutalo.

Once that process is resolved, Benfica will turn their attention to other positions identified as priorities. The signing of a winger and a defensive midfielder will remain on the table, but only after the reinforcement for the heart of the defence is completed, which is considered the most urgent dossier by the club’s decision-makers.

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