Tuesday, May 7, 2024

Benfica's season is over.... now what?

Benfica Blog
Benfica's 2023-24 campaign is all but done with two meaningless games remaining in league action as the club settles for second spot this season after their humiliating loss to Famalicao over the weekend handed the Portuguese League crown to cross-town rivals Sporting. 

President Rui Costa will have some serious decisions to make this summer, with the most hotly debated being whether manager Roger Schmidt should return for a third season after a disappointing campaign that saw the club only capture the Super Cup to kick off the football season.

Schmidt still has two years remaining on his contract and his departure from the club with his staff could prove quite costly. The other decisions that Costa will need to make is which players will remain with the club next season and which will see their time end.

The club has free agents in Angel di Maria and Rafa Silva. The thought is that both would be open to remaining with the club, but Costa would be best to save those potential big salaries that both players would command and go in a different direction next season.

Benfica also has a striker issue, with only Marcos Leonardo, who arrived in January, likely to continue at the club next season. So look for the club to move on from low scoring strike options Arthur Cabral and Casper Tengstedt when the summer window opens.

Look for Benfica to also cash in on some of their more valuable youngsters, with Antonio Silva and Joao Neves' names the most mentioned moving on, but I can only see the club moving on from one of the two, with the most likely candidate being Antonio Silva.

Benfica should also make some smaller moves with the likes of Joao Mario, Florentino and Morato potentially donning new club jerseys next season. This will be an interesting summer and Benfica fans hope that the next set of departures and arrivals will bring silverware next season.

Sunday, May 5, 2024

Benfica need to win for any hope at title

Benfica Blog
Benfica go into their game against Famalicao with a slim chance of repeating as Portuguese League champions, but they will need a victory today to remain in contention. The magic number is now one for Sporting to clinch the Portuguese League crown, which could happen as early as next weekend, but Benfica needs to let Sporting earn the title and not give it to them with dropped points in this game.

It has been a disappointing season for Benfica fans. A lot more was expected from this team, which on paper is the strongest squad in the Portuguese League but has been poorly managed all season. The club will see a series of changes during the summer season, which should see a series of players coming in and going out.

Kick off for today's game is at 8:30pm WEST.

 

Thursday, May 2, 2024

Benfica linked to Guimaraes forward Jota Silva

Benfica Blog
Benfica are looking within the league for a possible reinforcement, with Guimaraes' winger Jota Silva being linked with a summer move to Lisbon, according to reports coming out of Portugal this week.

Jota Silva was recently named the league player of the month for March in Portugal and also earned his first call up to the Portugal national side during this same month, coming on as a substitute in two contests.

Jota has been a key player for Guimaraes this season as the Minho club battles for a top three spot for the first time since the 2007-08 season. Jota has appeared in 39 games across all competitions, scoring 15 goals while providing seven helpers.

Guimaraes is said to be looking for €15M to move on from Jota, which would be a hefty profit on the €190K that they paid Casa Pia in the summer of 2022 to acquire the 24-year-old.