Benfica’s President Luis Vieira has revealed he attempted to sign Joao Cancelo prior to the full back’s switch to Inter during the summer mercato.
“I did everything to bring him back here, I tried with a bid of 25 million, but we were unable to reach an agreement with Valencia,” Vieira told Portuguese outlet MaisFutbol.
Cancelo joined Inter on loan as part of swap deal that saw Inter midfielder Geoffrey Kondogbia go the other way and both Inter and Valencia have options to make the loans permanent should they choose to do so. An injury soon after joining the Nerazzurri kept him out for around a month and he has made a total of four appearances this term.
The 23-year-old came through Benfica’s youth system and made just one first team appearance before Valencia swooped in and signed him on loan before signing him on a permanent basis for €15 million at the end of the loan.
