Napoli Going After Benfica Star, Rival Roma for Talent | OneFootball

Napoli have long secured a UEFA Champions League berth, which gives them the freedom to start planning for the future, and, whether or not Antonio Conte will still be with them, the management is looking for some youngsters to shore up the squad.

According to Gianluca Di Marzio, the Azzurri have laid eyes on Richard Rios. He was close to Roma last year but ended up joining Benfica for €27M instead. The Partenopei have touched base with his team and his entourage. He has starred in 33 matches across all competitions this campaign, scoring twice and providing 4 assists.

Per Tuttomercatoweb, the Giallorossi almost landed him, but Palmeiras changed their requests several times during the negotiations. Plus, hey didn’t feel the player was sufficiently convinced in some phone calls.

Napoli aren’t tracking just Rios, as they are intrigued by Kerim Alajbegovic, who recently contributed to ousting Italy from the 2026 World Cup. They have been working on him for a few months and aim to maintain their lead, Alfredo Pedullà relays.

His valuation is around €15/20M plus add-ons. Roma and Milan have been attached to him as well. Their interest isn’t tied to Alisson Santos, though. He will be bought out for €16.5M regardless.

Our Take on Napoli, Rios, and Alajbegovic

It has happened more quietly than it would have in other sides, but their director has done better when branching out on his own looking for starlets in January rather than when following Conte’s advice on some expensive and not-so-young players last summer.

It’s not a coincidence that they have turned the corner while dealing with just one competition. They must add depth and energy to ensure the same thing doesn’t occur again next year.