According to O Jogo (via SportWitness), Manchester United are favourites to sign Benfica midfielder Joao Neves ahead of Liverpool and Manchester City.
Neves has made huge strides since making his first-team debut for Benfica last season and he is currently one of the best young midfielders in world football. He is currently protected by a £104 million release clause in his contract and O Jogo claim that Benfica are looking to increase the valuation by another £26 million.
Elsewhere, the Portuguese outlet mention that Man United are leading the race to sign the highly-rated teenager followed by the likes of Manchester City, Liverpool, Newcastle United and Barcelona. There is no other information over a transfer, but Benfica sporting director Rui Costa wishes to keep Neves for another season.
Top talent
Neves has the ability to play anywhere in midfield and can operate from the right wing too. However, he is most comfortable from the no.6 position with his strong defensive skills. The youngster likes to engage in tackles as well as win duels. He has a high work rate over 90 minutes and has impressed with his recovery runs too.
On top of this, the Portuguese is blessed with tremendous passing skills. He has definitely developed beyond his age and may not be long before he is playing for one of the best European clubs. United will be hoping that they will be the ones to sign him. Bruno Fernandes has already praised his compatriot as a great player.
With the huge price involved, United are unlikely to make a move for him in January due to their Financial Fair Play situation. It could be the same for the rest of the teams and we could see a bidding war during next summer’s transfer window. United will surely want to negotiate a lesser price as well as a long-term payment plan for the teenage prodigy.
