Sporting, beware! Palhinha open to pay cut for Benfica, Marco Silva key | OneFootball

João Palhinha is closer to returning to Portugal, but it will hardly be to play for Sporting. The midfielder developed at Alcochete, who was on the list of targets for the Sporting SAD in this summer transfer window, is now strongly tipped to strengthen Benfica, and is willing to significantly lower his salary to make the move happen.

According to the newspaper O Jogo, the Portugal international is open to the possibility of working with Marco Silva again and wants to be closer to his children. A reunion with the coach, who managed Palhinha for two seasons at Fulham, is seen as one of the main factors behind the growing closeness between the two parties.

Before that, João Palhinha had also been close to returning to Sporting. The midfielder showed willingness to give up part of the roughly €9 million per year he earns at Bayern Munich, but the Germans’ financial demands ultimately made an agreement with the Lions unfeasible.

Bayern are willing to negotiate the player for a fee between €20 million and €25 million, a scenario that is leading Benfica to favor a loan deal with an option to buy. At the same time, according to the newspaper A Bola, the Eagles are prepared to offer the Portugal international a contract worth around €3 million per season.

In January this year, in an interview with the BBC, João Palhinha had high praise for Marco Silva, considering him the coach who contributed most to his development. "The coach under whom I felt I grew the most was Marco, because of the way he helped me develop. He was the coach under whom I felt I improved a lot and who helped me take a step forward in my football," said the former Sporting midfielder.

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