Sérgio Conceição wants to count on at least one of the two midfielders already signed by FC Porto to strengthen his midfield in the training camp in the Algarve, which starts tomorrow and ends on the 26th, especially with Alan Varela, whose signature he expected financially. Reasons why the dragons think they can overrun in the next 72 hours. The player’s club, Boca Juniors, rejected an initial offer of 7.2 million euros for 90% of the economic rights and 15% of the capital gains. The blue and whites, who have two envoys in Buenos Aires, admit reaching €10m, which would give the Argentines a percentage in the future sale of the footballer’s pass.
Alan Varela is awaiting the conclusion of a deal to travel to Portugal and undergo medical examinations before writing the five-year verbal agreement he has already concluded with FC Porto. The maximum amount the Dragons will admit to paying is still some way off the €13.4m Varela release clause, an amount Boca would naturally have preferred to get for one of the most highly regarded stars by fans. The midfielder is among those called up for Boca’s match against Gimnasia, today, at 20.30 in mainland Portugal. If you do not play, this may be a promising sign that an understanding is approaching.
The 22-year-old Argentine has seen phenomenal growth since being promoted to the main squad in 2020. The first season was a learning one, but then his talent prevailed, as he added 32 and 42 appearances in the following two seasons. This year he has already played 30 matches and scored a goal. It’s a slightly different picture for Uribe, but targeting the Colombian’s place, remembering that the former Porto midfielder also had a different role in Mexican America and was made sixth by Sergio Conceicao. Precisely for this reason the blue and white coach wants Alan Varela to be in the training camp as soon as possible, in order to fit his tactical philosophy and speed up the process of adaptation of the reinforcement to the group and the Porto team.
Moreno: It’s not simple
At this point, there is great confidence that Alan Varela’s transfer will take place within the timescale the manager would like. In case that doesn’t happen, FC Porto have other reported targets, one of which is Racing Club’s Anibal Moreno. However, there is an important point to be made: Moreno is not seen as Plan B for Alan Varela. On the contrary, he was always highly regarded in the dossier relating to the succession of Uribe. The problem relates to the contract, valid until 2025, and its release clause, which has a value of €25m, much higher than that of Alan Varela, which therefore assumes an initial approach of around €12m. The Racing Club is relatively stable economically and is committed to keeping Moreno, not only because of internal rivalries, but also because of the strong commitment to Libertadores. Avellaneda’s team qualified for the round of 16 in first place in Group A and will face Nacional de Montevideo in two rounds on August 3 and 8, with strong expectations of reaching the quarter-finals of the continental competition. Twenty percent of Moreno’s transfer belongs to Newell’s Old Boys, which means Racing will want to make as much money as possible, even though they know the athlete wants to jump to Europe.
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