Market moves: Benfica, Sporting eye Champions League star | OneFootball

In recent hours, the Kazakh press has been reporting that Benfica and Sporting are already making moves to seal the signing of Temirlan Anarbekov, a goalkeeper who has stood out for Kairat Almaty and is a regular starter for the national team. The same sources indicate that figures are already on the table.

The information was first reported by Yermukhamed Maulen, who highlights the great performances delivered by the 22-year-old goalkeeper in this season’s Champions League, where he even came up against Sporting. The same source adds that Benfica, alongside the Lions, is willing to submit an offer that could reach €2.5 million.

but in the remaining matches of the league phase, the Kazakh footballer was a starter and produced good performances for Kairat Almaty. In fact, it was thanks to the 22-year-old that the Kazakh club made it into the lucrative competition, as he saved three penalties in the playoff against Celtic.

As such, Anarbekov is another name to emerge on the list of potential reinforcements for Benfica with the club’s future in mind. At a time when the Eagles are considering selling Anatoliy Trubin, the signing of a new goalkeeper has become one of the red-and-white structure’s priorities.

So far this season, in 2026, playing for Kairat Almaty, Temirlan Anarbekov — valued at €400,000 — has already made 10 official appearances: seven in the Kazakh League, two in the Champions League and one in the Kazakhstan Super Cup. For the national team, the goalkeeper has four caps and is under contract until December 2028.

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