João Filipe signs new contract with Benfica

Young Benfica winger Joao Filipe, commonly known as Jota, has signed a new contract with the Lisbon club, extending his stay at the Portuguese outfit until 2024.

The signing of the contract brings an end to painstaking negotiations, which have gone on for over a year as Benfica sought to tie the talented 20-year old to the club for the foreseeable future.

His previous contract ran out in 2022, and contained a release clause of just 30 million euros - a fee widely perceived as far less than his true value.

Benfica therefore ran the risk of letting one of their top academy products go for a cut price, and many had started to give up on seeing Jota extend his stay at the club, but he has finally confirmed that his future lies with the reigning Portuguese champions.

Benfica fans will also be delighted that his new contract contains a much higher release clause, now set at 88 million euros, offering the club further protection.

Upon signing the contract, Jota, who has been with Benfica since 2007 when he was just 8 years old, said: “I am happy. This is the club of my heart and staying until 2024 is, without a doubt, very good.”

“I intend to continue for many more years and make all Benfica fans very happy.”

Before the signing of this contract, Jota had been linked with a loan move to an English club, something that Benfica have been considering and that Jota himself would be open to.

Agent Jorge Mendes has been perusing potential destinations across England, and is believed to have offered Jota to several English clubs, though the final deision ultimately rests with Benfica.

Many may believe that the signing of this new contract ends any chance of Jota heading out on loan over the coming days, though that is certainly not neccessarily the case; if anything, it makes a move away more likely, with the player now protected with a longer contract and much higher release clause.

It means that, if Benfica do opt to loan him for the rest of the season - and beyond - they still have full control of the future of one of their main assets.

Additionally, Benfica are also closing in on the signing of highly-regarded Brazilian winger Pedrinho. The 21-year old Corinthians star is able to play on either flank, or through the middle, meaning that Jota could find himself even further down the pecking order if he remains at the club.

The chance of Jota being loaned out this month, therefore, lives on.

Joao Filipe. Photo author: Anton Zaitsev. License link.