Benfica is on the verge of breaking the ‘divorce’ with the Brazilians; to understand

Benfica are set to sign Brazilian striker André Luiz, Rio Ave’s star player in the Portuguese league. According to the newspaper “A Bola”, the transaction should amount to around 12 million euros, including bonuses.

In addition to the Brazilian, the Encarnados had also agreed to recruit Cape Verdean Sidny Cabral, from Estrela Amadora, for the second half of the current European season. The speedy forward stands 1.85 tall and can play in all attacking positions.

Andre Luiz has been the highlight for Rio Ave, who are having an inconsistent campaign in the Portuguese league, and is the team’s top scorer with five goals and six assists. Thanks to his good performances, the former Flamengo youth player even attracted interest from teams like Bayer Leverkusen and Olympique Marseille, but opted for the Encarnados.

The 23-year-old striker will arrive at Benfica and break a curious spell within the club this season: being the only Brazilian in the squad. It may not seem like much, but for the second time in 41 years, the Reds are starting a season without the presence of a Brazilian player in their squad.

Over the past four decades, the Lisbon team has always had Brazilian players in its squad. In 1978, club members approved that foreigners could wear the Eagles’ colors and, a year later, in 1979, the club recruited Brazilian striker Jorge Gomes, who played for Boavista. In the same season, César, Paulo Campos and Cláudio Adão arrived.

Since then, the Reds have always had at least one Brazilian in their squad. During this period, striker Jonas and defender Luisão became unconditional idols of the club, while goalkeeper Ederson and defender David Luiz also created strong links with the Lisbon club.

Interestingly, the last Brazilian to play for Benfica before this was striker Arthur Cabral, now at Botafogo. The center forward was sold to Alvinegro during the Club World Cup special window for 15 million euros (R$95 million, at the price at the time).