Vieira refutes Lage, reveals new details on Bernardo Silva’s exit | OneFootball

Luís Filipe Vieira denied the statements made by Bruno Lage, when the Benfica coach claimed that he had a say in the club's signings for the first time this summer. The former president also took the opportunity to comment on the situation of Bernardo Silva, which has been making headlines in recent days. The former top leader of the eagles had already commented on the most recent polls of the elections.

"I don't even know what he means by that. From what I remember, Bruno Lage had the freedom to make the teams he wanted and how he wanted, no one ever obstructed anything, he was a champion, thanks also to his quality and the quality of the players and a great structure that accompanied him. Now, if he was the one who made the Benfica squad at this moment, just put Benfica to win", began Luís Filipe Vieira.

The former president of Benfica continued: "At this moment, we have a squad made by a coach, as I understand from his words. To say that at the time Benfica already had a very strong structure, decisions were made together, had a sports and general director, Mr. Bruno Lage knows perfectly well who these people are. Interestingly, he also signed the dismissals and signings. I only signed to validate".

Still on the subject, Luís Filipe Vieira was asked about the truthfulness of Bruno Lage's words, and he replied: "It was thanks to me that he could be placed in the forefront of Portuguese football. I was the one who brought him from England, I have always had a great relationship with him from very early on. But people usually change. You know, when power changes, people also change. That must be his problem".

"But what is important at this moment is that he puts Benfica to win, which is what we all want, that he plays better and that the team starts to perform. We spent over 100 million euros and there was no coach in Benfica's history who had the freedom to choose a squad above 100. He was the one who stated this, he has that responsibility, we are relaxed, he made the squad", he then said, before addressing the issue of Bernardo Silva - in an open letter, Luís Filipe Vieira stated that he prevented the player's departure against the will of a coach and a sports director.

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