António Silva's Benfica message, special thanks to... Roger Schmidt | OneFootball

António Silva has already reacted to his departure from Benfica. Hours after being officially announced as a Bournemouth signing, the Portuguese international took to social media to leave an emotional message for the Benfica fans, saying goodbye to the club where he spent almost his entire development and promising that his bond with the Eagles is far from over.

“Our story doesn’t end here,” wrote the centre-back, who is leaving Benfica for the Premier League in a transfer that could earn Rui Costa’s SAD up to €30 million, made up of €25 million fixed plus another €5 million in performance-related bonuses.

António Silva also made sure to leave a special thank you to Roger Schmidt, the coach who backed his promotion to the first team. “He was the one who believed in me and gave me the opportunity to fulfil the dream of my life,” he highlighted.

After 11 years linked to Benfica and 183 matches played for the first team, the Portuguese international bids farewell to the Eagles with a simple but heartfelt message: “Thank you for everything, Benfica fans.” In the long post, António Silva did not hide the significance that the Club of Light had in his life, recalling the journey that began in the academy and the dream fulfilled of winning the National Championship in the red shirt.

“Benfica, to me, is everything. I was just another kid full of dreams in Benfica’s academy. Among those dreams, I dreamed that one day I would become champion with our club. I achieved that with you and I will never forget how happy we were that night,” wrote the Portuguese international, in a reference to winning the title in the 2022/23 season.

At 22, the defender admitted that the time had come to begin a new chapter in his career, without hiding the emotion of the farewell. “Life is made up of cycles and, unfortunately, the time has come to take my career in a new direction. Benfica will always stay with me in my heart,” he added.

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