Mourinho ‘to keep’ Benfica duo after standout January | OneFootball

José Mourinho is said to have decided to keep Andreas Schjelderup and Gianluca Prestianni at Benfica after a transformative January when both were close to leaving.

Record writes that the pair moved from fringe options to key contributors, and that the coach asked for them to remain in the squad.

A run of increasingly assured displays included the number 25 starting a fifth successive match, a first for him in Benfica colours. A historic night against Real Madrid reportedly sealed the call to keep both players until the end of the season.

Prestianni was targeted by River Plate, but a sale did not happen. Schjelderup attracted widespread interest, with various sources linking the 21-year-old first to Italy and then to Brugge, yet moves did not materialise after Mourinho requested he stay.

This season Prestianni, valued at 12 million euros, has played 27 official games for Benfica, 16 in Liga Portugal Betclic, six in the Champions League, two in the Taça de Portugal, two in the Taça da Liga and one in the Supertaça. He has totalled 1,205 minutes, scoring two goals and providing one assist.

Source: Glorioso 1904