Mikel Arteta might be planning for a future with David Luiz in the Premier League – but the Brazilian wants to go back to Benfica at some point.
Arsenal defender David Luiz has made it clear that he dreams of a return to Benfica before the end of his career, telling SporTV that ‘everybody knows’ of his desire to light up the Estadio da Luz once again.
Long before a Brazil international was strutting his stuff at Chelsea, PSG and now Arsenal, he was honing his considerable talents at arguably the biggest club in Portugal.
The poodle-haired centre-back spent four years at Benfica between 2007 and 2011, winning one Primeira Liga title alongside Pablo Aimar, Angel di Maria and Oscar Cardozo.
Almost a decade has passed since Luiz last pulled on the famous red shirt and, at the age of 33, time is hardly on his side as he enters the autumn of his career. But a man who joined Arsenal in an £8 million deal last summer is desperate to make an emotional homecoming before it is too late.
“I never lost my connection with Benfica, I have that in my heart, everybody knows I want to come back,” Luiz, a Premier League and Champions League winner with Chelsea, admits.
“I want to wear the Benfica shirt again and feel that sensation. The day I come back to the Estadio da Luz it is going to be very special, one of the greatest feelings of my life.”
Who knows, maybe that dream return could arise sooner rather than later.
Arsenal will finally welcome William Saliba to the Emirates this summer while a deal to sign Flamengo loanee Pablo Mari on a permanent basis is already in place. Furthermore, it is no secret that the Gunners are looking to bring in another new centre-back with Axel Disasi, Dayot Upamecano, Jonathan Tah and co all linked in recent weeks.
Then again, Luiz has been much-improved since Mikel Arteta took over in December with his radiant personality and natural-born leadership skills making him an important figure on and off the pitch.
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