David Luiz reveals Benfica president unaware of his signing | OneFootball

David Luiz revealed that he arrived at Benfica injured, a situation that went unnoticed by the Eagles’ President, who at the time was Luís Filipe Vieira. The Brazilian central defender gave an interview to Gazzetta dello Sport, where he commented on his arrival and time at the Clube da Luz.

“In January 2007, Benfica sold Ricardo Rocha to Tottenham. The club already had some old debts to my agent, so he went to Benfica and proposed my name to settle the debt. There were only a few days left before the end of the winter transfer window and the club didn’t have any other defenders available,” David Luiz began to explain – who recently made history in the Champions League.

The central defender, who now plays for Pafos, continued: “I was playing in the third division; with Vitória we had just been promoted to the second. I had pubalgia and could barely walk. I arrived in Lisbon on January 31, the next day I did the medical exams and didn’t pass. The president, obviously, didn’t know about this. It remained a secret.”

“For three months, I would arrive three hours early to training to do physiotherapy, then I would train with the rest of the team as if I was fine. But I felt terrible: I couldn’t run, control the ball, or pass it. Not even the coach knew about my condition and considered me weak. Only in April did I play my first game,” concluded David Luiz.

To finish, the former Eagles player also commented on the interest from the northern rival: “My contract ended in June and Benfica offered me 3,000 euros per month. I was 20 years old. FC Porto came to me with a five-year contract, with much higher values. I was not a priority for Benfica and FC Porto really wanted me. So I called my parents, and my father told me: ‘Don’t spit on the plate you ate from. Respect the people who believed in you. Sign for Benfica, not for the money.’ It was a great life lesson.”

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