Cristiano Ronaldo approves of João Félix Juventus move
According to A Bola, the Italian club has spoken about the young Benfica striker, who shares agents with the star, looking to step ahead of rival suitors.
João Félix has been one of the rising stars around Europe this season with his impressive performances for Benfica. And it is the form of the 19-year old that has had his more illustrious compatriot Cristiano Ronaldo putting in a good word for a move to his club, Juventus.
Ronaldo, Félix and the Old Lady
The Benfica youngster has captured the interest of many of the continent's elite clubs, with both Manchester sides, City and United, as well as the Spanish trio of Real Madrid, Barça and Atlético (the latter looking for Griezmann cover) keen on the player. Juventus have been closely following the striker's progress too, and it may be that their ace card in making the transfer to Turin happen lies in their new talisman, signed last summer from Los Blancos.
According to Portuguese paper A Bola, their national hero is keen for his compatriot to join him in Serie A. The Champions League setback against Ajax already has the Juve directors reacting. Not even an eighth consecutive Scudetto has diluted the feeling that the club must make significant investment in the summer to once again make an assault towards European glory. Félix is shining bright and is seen as an ideal strike partner for the five-time Ballon d'Or winner.
This said, The Old Lady is aware that she will likely have to splash out over 100 million euros to secure the player's services, and knows that a star in the Primeira Liga (11 goals and seven assists in 21 games) does not always convert successfully into the Big Five leagues. But with such focus on the player from the richest clubs, the 120-million-euro release clause built into his Benfica contract is almost certainly going to be triggered by someone.
Another factor in Juventus' favour could lie with Félix' agent, Jorge Mendes, who also happens to represent Cristiano.