Benfica Reach Agreement For Mario, Sporting Prepare For Legal Battle
Drama continues to unfold in the transfer situation that concerns the transfer of Portuguese midfielder, Joao Mario.
According to Portuguese media outlet, Record, the midfielder is set for a move to Benfica from Serie A champions, Inter Milan after both sides agreed on a deal.
The deal will reportedly cost the Portuguese club around €7.5 million and there’s an agreement with the player for a five-year contract for about €2 million per season.
A major stumbling block to the deal however is Sporting, the club where Joao Mario spent last season on loan and helped them to the league title. Portugal’s champions are ready for a legal battle as they believe that there is a clause in the deal that brought Joao Mario to the club last season that prevents him from joining another Portuguese club.
For Joao Mario’s entourage though, no such clause exists. They believe that the only clause in the deal is the one that compels them to inform Sporting of any deal with another Portuguese club, which they have done. Sporting continue to insist that it is an outright ban on Portuguese clubs.
Inter and Sporting had a verbal agreement last month for the permanent transfer of Joao Mario, the Italian club reportedly agreed for the Portuguese club to pay around €8 million but when Sporting presented their offer, it was believed to be around €3 million plus another €2 million in bonuses, an offer that angered the Italian champions and the player who believed that a deal was close to completion.
Inter and Joao Mario’s entourage had since started to look for alternatives, one of which was Benfica.
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