Newcastle and Southampton are among the clubs to have opened talks over a potential deal for 21-year-old Benfica forward Goncalo Ramos, 90min understands.
Ramos has stepped for Benfica up in the absence of Darwin Nunez so this season, starting all of the club’s five games across the Primeira Liga and Champions League qualifiers and scoring five goals – in addition to three assists – in the process.
The Algarve-born starlet won’t turn 22 until next summer and is suddenly one of the brightest emerging talents in Portugal.
Ramos found the net in Benfica’s 2-0 Champions League playoff round first leg tie with Dynamo Kyiv on Wednesday night and publicly pledged his immediate future to the club – saying he’s ‘100% focused’ when asked a possible transfer.
Benfica coach Roger Schmidt echoed that sentiment but appeared more realistic that a good offer could see the Portuguese giants cash in.
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“When you look at Goncalo playing, you can see that he loves playing for Benfica,” the boss told CNN Portugal. “It’s football, it’s a business, the market is open, we can’t be sure of anything, we’re just focused on the next game.”
90min understands that Newcastle and Southampton are just two of a number of sides wanting to sign Ramos, with both teams looking to strengthen their attacking arsenal ahead of the September 1 deadline.
Eddie Howe’s Newcastle want competition for Callum Wilson and Chris Wood, in addition to more quality, while Ralph Hasenhuttl is looking to challenge the positions of Che Adams, Adam Armstrong and Sekou Mara.
In terms of a possible transfer fee, 90min has learned that Benfica value Ramos at around £30m.
