Two-footed player wins over Mourinho, brings fresh options to Benfica | OneFootball

The winter transfer market wasn’t very busy on the Luz side, but it did allow for a signing who is now getting minutes under José Mourinho and providing greater rotation for the Eagles’ squad thanks to his versatility and ability to play with both feet: Sidny Lopes Cabral.

The player has already featured in seven matches for Benfica: Estoril (League, 13 minutes as left wing-back), Braga (League Cup, 25 minutes as left wing-back), Porto (Portuguese Cup, 83 minutes as left wing-back), Rio Ave (League, 28 minutes, again as left wing-back), Estrela da Amadora (League, 90 minutes as left wing-back), Tondela (League, 28 minutes as right wing-back), and Alverca (League, 73 minutes as right back).

Three days before the 23-year-old signed with Benfica, in the pre-match press conference ahead of the league game against Braga on December 27, 2025, José Mourinho publicly analyzed the characteristics of the Cape Verde international: “He’s one of those players from whom the team benefits greatly because he’s truly versatile. You can tell that, for him, it’s the same whether he plays on the right, the left, as a full-back or a wing-back. That gives the coach confidence,” he said at the time.

He has yet to play in the position where Samuel Dahl has been the undisputed starter: the left side of defense. That likely won’t happen on Friday against Santa Clara, as Amar Dedic is expected to remain out of the starting eleven to fully prepare for the matches against Real Madrid. Sidny or Daniel Banjaqui will play on the right and Dahl on the left.

This season (Estrela da Amadora and Benfica), Sidny Cabral – valued at 2 million euros – has played 23 matches: 20 in Liga Portugal Betclic, two in the Portuguese Cup, and one in the League Cup. The footballer has six goals and five assists to his name.

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