In a shocking turn of events, Atlético Madrid will reportedly pay the £106.5 million release clause for 19-year old Benfica starlet João Félix, according to The Guardian’s Fabrizio Romano.
In one of the summer’s biggest transfer sagas, João Félix could be on his way to replace the outgoing Antoine Griezmann at the Wanda Metropolitano this season. While the player was linked to several of Europe’s elite clubs this window including Manchester City, Manchester United, and Juventus, he has reportedly chosen to continue his career in Spain, although Benfica have vehemently denied that an agreement has been reached, per Bleacher Report.
The move will smash Atleti’s club transfer record of £63 million paid to Monaco last summer for Thomas Lemar as Los Rojiblancos begin a new era without stars Diego Godín, Griezmann, Lucas Hernandez, Juanfran, and possibly Rodri, Jan Oblak, and Thomas Partey.
While Félix undoubtedly has world class talent, as he scored 20 goals and provided 11 assists last season for the Portuguese champions and appeared for his country in their Nations League semi-final victory against Switzerland, the move does not come without serious risk.
Despite being hailed as the successor to Cristiano Ronaldo, he is perhaps the most direct replacement Atleti could find for Griezmann, tactically speaking. Félix will be deployed as a secondary striker behind Álvaro Morata as he looks to create chances and open up spaces in the channels for teammates while also contributing to the team’s goalscoring efforts, just as Griezmann did following his arrival from Real Sociedad in 2014.
While Los Colchoneros have a strong track record of success in recent years with attackers, with an impressive list of stars including Fernando Torres, Sergio Agüero, Falcao, Diego Costa, David Villa, and Griezmann, several star attackers have failed to live up to the billing under Diego Simeone.
Even though players such as Mario Mandžukić, Gelson Martins, and Lemar are all highly talented attacking footballers, none were able to truly find their footing in Atleti’s extremely defensive setup.
While Félix is already a gifted player with the potential to be one of the world’s absolute best, the weight and expectation of a £106.5 million signing at a club like Atlético could seriously affect a player of his age. Moreover, when he is not influencing the play, the Portuguese attacker has a penchant to be shut out of a match completely, adding little to nothing.
This weakness in his game was on full display in the match against Switzerland, in which Félix did not provide a spark before being substituted in the 70th minute. In addition, while playing for a defensive-minded side like Atleti, Félix will be forced to carry the brunt of the attacking and creative work for the team, placing him directly into the spotlight in nearly every match he plays.
Therefore, while the 19-year old has star potential at the Wanda Metropolitano, the possibility that he will flop must absolutely be considered. The move puts Atleti into a completely different category as far as world financial powers in football, with the fee being over £45 million greater than even Manchester City’s record signing, which will add an unprecedented level of pressure on the 19-year old’s shoulders.
While Atleti may have just secured the greatest signing in club history, they also could have made a mistake that will only accelerate their demise as they fall out of the Barcelona-Real Madrid level of Spanish football.