After months of speculation – and interest from Premier League trio Fulham, West Ham United and Crystal Palace – one of the hottest strikers in European football has finally settled on his next step.
HITC reported a few months ago that three London-based sides had sent scouts to watch a forward who could not stop scoring throughout 2023/24.
With 33 goals in all competitions – and 29 in the league alone – he ended the season with the Golden Boot on his mantelpiece. Well, half of the Golden Boot anyway; Vangelis Pavlidis forced to share the trophy with PSV Eindhoven captain and former Newcastle United misfit Luuk de Jong after finishing level at the top of the charts.
Pavlidis is not just a goalscorer however.
With moves that would not look out of place alongside Fred Astaire on the ballroom floor, the silky AZ Alkmaar frontman is a master of dropping the shoulder and bamboozling nearby centre-halves with a shimmy and a shake.
It’s certainly ambitious to draw comparisons with an Ajax-era Luis Suarez. But few players in Dutch football combine the end product and the technical qualities of a man who has grown exponentially year on year over in the Netherlands.
Vangelis Pavlidis not joining West Ham or Crystal Palace
“I would have advised Ajax to sign Vangelis Pavlidis before this season, although he would probably have cost quite a bit. I think he is a real Ajax striker,” Nikos Machlas, who himself enjoyed a prolific spell in Amsterdam, tells Voetbal International.
“I think Vangelis is one of the best centre-forwards in Europe at the moment. He could easily come close to my number of 34 goals as top scorer.
“But I expect that his future will now lie outside the Eredivisie.”
Machlas was right to think so.
Pavlidis was spotted arriving at an airport on Thursday. But it was not Heathrow. His destination won’t be Fulham, Crystal Palace or West Ham United.
Instead, the former Willem II ace is in Lisbon to undergo a medical and put pen to paper with Portuguese giants Benfica, packing up his belongings and arriving in the capital alongside his entourage.
A Bola, while posting a video showing Pavlidis taking in his new surroundings, report that Benfica will pay £15 million, rising to £17 million, in the hope that this Eredivisie import will continue to develop his game like Suarez did at Liverpool a decade ago.
Benfica on verge of signing AZ Alkmaar striker
Pascal Jansen, Pavlidis’ former AZ coach, will be pleased with his choice of the Primeira Liga. Jansen knows that the Greek international sees a future for himself in England or Germany, but feels that something of a ‘mid-range’ league would be the sensible next step for a man who still has a lot to prove.
“(Pavlidis is) special boy, with a great personality. He came to us from Willem II and had a number of things very clearly in mind which he wanted to achieve,” Jansen recalls, speaking to Voetbal Primeur.
“He has gotten better every year. The numbers show that. But, above all, he is a fantastic professional. A great guy too.
“He has ambitions in the Premier League and the Bundesliga. I would advise him to move to the middle or the sub-top, because there he has the best chance of taking the steps he also took at AZ.”
West Ham, HITC understands, are focused on a centre-half as things stand. They have held talks over Wolves’ £50 million-rated skipper Max Kilman after a deal for Fabricio Bruno broke down.
The Hammers have already signed Palmeiras whizzkid Luis Guilherme.
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