Enzo Fernandez has a very bright career ahead of him in football, but his immediate future at Benfica isn’t looking good.
The Argentine has been the subject of so much transfer speculation over the past few weeks. There have been talks with Liverpool and bids from Chelsea over the past fortnight or so, and now, the player is pushing to leave Lisbon.
He didn’t turn up to training earlier this week, and now, he’s being left out of Benfica’s matchday squad against Portimonense.
At least that’s what Fabrizio Romano is reporting.
The Italian journalist says that Fernandez isn’t even going to make the bench for Benfica’s game on Friday night after a few days that Romano has described as ‘complicated’.
We’ve seen this play out with many players before, and often it doesn’t end well.
Fernandez is being held to ransom by Benfica. They want their £105m for the player, while the player himself clearly wants to leave.
As talented as he is, Benfica are sending a clear message here, nobody is bigger than the club and if you’re not going to be professional, you can watch from the stands or on TV at home.
The Argentine is stuck between a rock and a hard place right now. He can either apologise to his current club and go back into the squad with is tail between his legs or he can wait out for a Premier League-record bid from either Chelsea or Liverpool and hope to get his transfer.
After a stunning World Cup, Fernandez’s stock is the highest it has ever been, so a £105m bid isn’t completely out of the question, but no team has yet triggered his release clause and as the January window rolls on, he may become increasingly nervous about what the future holds for him.
Fernandez won’t be playing for Benfica on Friday, and there’s a good chance he’ll never play for the club again if his transfer wish comes true.
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