Real Madrid are reportedly eyeing a swoop for Benfica youngster Joao Felix, although his reported €120m release clause could be set to increase.
The 19-year-old has made quite the impression in his homeland so far this season, scoring eight goals and providing three assists in 21 appearances.
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With that in mind, it’s easy to see why he would attract interest from elsewhere, with AS reporting that Real Madrid are set to join the likes of Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich and Juventus in the transfer battle to land his signature.
However, if any of the clubs mentioned above have genuine ambitions of prising him away from Benfica, it’s noted that he currently has a €120m release clause in his contract, while the Portuguese giants are looking to sign him to new terms which will see that increase to a €200m clause.
Regardless of whether or not that clause is eventually met, that’s a huge amount of money to splash out on a young player who hasn’t yet proven himself at the highest level on a consistent basis, and so they would arguably be gambling on him building on his early potential and developing into a star.
Nevertheless, the early signs are certainly promising, and given the calibre of the clubs mentioned as being interested parties above, he’s certainly doing something right to earn their attention.
With Real Madrid reportedly throwing their hat in the ring too, having failed to fill the void left behind by Cristiano Ronaldo last summer following his move to Juventus, a swoop for a young player like Joao Felix who can provide a long-term solution might just be the sensible move from the reigning Champions League winners.