João Félix is about to go on loan to a Premier League club, but an associated fee may deter some clubs. Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea are among the teams expressing interest in the Portuguese international.
However, those clubs would have to pay for only the remaining five months of the campaign. The Athletic reports that João Félix has an associated loan fee of around $16 million. Plus, that doesn’t include a gross salary of about $6.5 million. In total, a suitor needs to spend around $22.5 million. Again, this is just for the rest of the campaign.
Atlético Madrid is set to lose Félix for this season with the club underperforming very much. Eleven points behind Barcelona and Real Madrid, Atlético is in fourth place. Additionally, the club finished fourth in their UEFA Champions League group. Consequently, it is completely out of European competition.
Athletic believe that this figure may drop as the January transfer window fades. This is especially the case for the three aforementioned clubs. Each one has needs that differ from the technical capacity that João Félix brings.
João Félix’s loan fee may alienate some clubs
That technical ability showed promising shoots at Atlético Madrid against the best opposition. Last season, he had good performances against Manchester United and Liverpool. He also did well against Manchester City, although Atlético suffered elimination in the quarterfinals.
Felix then started four of five games for Portugal at the 2022 World Cup. He scored against Ghana in the first game. Later, against Switzerland in the round of 16, he provided two assists in Portugal’s 6-1 win.
Part of Felix’s problem is consistency. Few dispute the full-back’s ability and talent. That’s why Atlético dropped his club record fee, almost $130 million, to bring him over from Benfica when he was a teenager. Atlético expected the dominance that he showed at Benfica. They are yet to see that in Spain.
PHOTO: IMAGO / LOF Agency
