Inter midfielder Joao Mario could be on the move to Benfica, with the Lisbon club having made the Nerazzurri a €7.5 million offer for the player.
This according to Sky Sport Italia transfer market expert Gianluca Di Marzio, who reported on his show that Benfica now appear to be the club closest to signing the 28-year-old.
The midfielder had spent last season on loan with Benfica’s city rivals Sporting CP, helping Sporting win their first Portuguese title in nineteen years, and it is thought that the player had hoped for a permanent stay at the club.
However, talks between Inter and Sporting broke down over the Portuguese champions’ unwillingness to meet Inter’s valuation for the player, who the Nerazzurri hope to offload this summer.
With a move to Sporting on a permanent basis off the table, Inter have begun to listen to other offers, with Nice, Villarreal, and Besiktas among clubs to have joined the chase for Mario.
Benfica are also interest, and with their €7.5 million offer have met the Nerazzurri’s valuation for the midfielder.
Sporting have the option to match their city rivals’ offer for the player, due to a clause in the deal which took him to the Giuseppe Meazza from Sporting in the summer of 2016, but are unlikely to do so given their difficulty on the fee involved.
It now appears that the Portuguese player’s departure from Inter on a permanent basis is getting closer, with Benfica a very probable destination.
