£12m ‘new Haaland’ told he’s better off not joining Liverpool or Newcastle

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Andreas Schjelderup has made the ‘perfect’ decision joining Portuguese giants Benfica instead of moving to a Premier League outfit like Liverpool or Newcastle United, Norwegian scout Stig Torbjornsen tells Eurosport. 

Benfica have made superb use of the South American market over the years, taking the likes of Angel di Maria, Enzo Fernandez and Nicolas Gaitan across the Atlantic.

The Primeira Liga leaders have switched their attention from South America to Scandinavia this month, however; signing free-scoring Casper Tengstedt from Rosenborg while investing a further £12 million in teen sensation Schjelderup. 

According to Fabrizio Romano, Schjelderup held talks with Jurgen Klopp’s side but felt moving to Lisbon rather than Liverpool would be more beneficial for his development. This is, interestingly, the second time the Norway U21 international rebuffed Anfield advances. He spent time on trial at the six-time European champions before making his name at Nordsjaelland. 

‘New Erling Haaland’ Andreas Schjelderup rejects Liverpool for Benfica

“He is where he should be. (If he succeeds) his price will increase by another 30 million,” says Torbjornsen, now IFK Goteborg’s chief scout.

“He has been good for a long time, and delivered the goods for a long time. (This is) the perfect move. It’s easy to become one of the crowd if you go to Ajax, Liverpool or Juventus as a 16-year-old.

“I think it’s cool that you don’t choose what is best financially, but join the club where you can develop best.”

Schjelderup, labelled the ‘new Erling Haaland’ by some due to his shock of blonde hair and emphatic finishing, scored 10 times in 17 games for Nordsjaelland last season. Now at Benfica, Schjelderup is trusting his development with a club who turned Enzo Fernandez, Di Maria, Joao Felix and more into some of Europe’s brightest young talents. 

“I think he will get a lot of playing time,” adds Torbjornsen. “Because they can use young players in many games where they should win easily.

“He wants to get playing time. Instead of going to Southampton or Newcastle, and then struggling like hell every day to get playing time. I think it is a smart move. Benfica is a top club that plays in the Champions League every year.”