Rui Costa turned down €20m move for Luuk de Jong’s ex-teammate | OneFootball

Benfica, led by Rui Costa, refused to offer more than 20 million euros for Carlos Álvarez, a former teammate of Luuk de Jong at Sevilla. According to the latest data, Levante, beyond the fixed amount, wanted an additional part in objectives and also a significant portion of a future profit.

"The Reds did not agree with the valuation and, to avoid dragging out the negotiation, turned definitively to Lukebakio, who arrived for 20 million euros and another 4 in objectives," reveals the newspaper O Jogo in this Wednesday's edition, explaining why Carlos Álvarez was not a reinforcement for Benfica.

It should be noted that, on the last day of the transfer market, the president of the Spanish club publicly addressed the issue: "Carlos Álvarez is a Levante player. If he stays, great, but we are in talks with Benfica. There are a thousand and one operations underway. These last hours of the market are madness."

Due to Levante's million-dollar demands for Carlos Álvarez, Benfica turned their attention to Dodi Lukebakio. The transfer was made for roughly the same values, but the 27-year-old Belgian international is an established player who greatly pleases the Eagles' coach, Bruno Lage.

Last season, wearing the Levante jersey, Carlos Álvarez - valued at 6 million euros - played 43 matches, totaling 3,424 minutes. In total, the 22-year-old right winger scored seven goals and made 12 assists, being one of the main figures of the team led by Spanish coach Julián Calero.

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