Jorge Mendes said at the “Leading the Game” forum that Bernardo Silva was repeatedly written off early in his career and that Benfica signed João Félix almost as a courtesy. The forum is part of the Executive Master in Football Business Administration programme organised by Católica Porto Business School in collaboration with the Portuguese League.
Bernardo Silva remarks
Mendes said: “There is the example of Bernardo Silva. I was told several times: Jorge, forget it, you have no chance, Bernardo Silva will never become an important player, and all he can achieve is playing in the first or second division, perhaps with a team like Paços de Ferreira.”
He added: “Everything is very relative, and it becomes more complicated when it comes to players in youth teams, because there are clubs that give priority to players who are physically stronger. Everyone rejected the idea, and when he moved to Monaco the club did not want to keep him after his first year, and I had to convince the president.”
João Félix example
Mendes said: “João Félix, for example, when he was at Porto, was a player... Most of the players whose transfers I have overseen over the past years, and when I say most of them I mean it literally, perhaps more than 80%, were not the most prominent players at their clubs. And João Félix is an example of that.”
He said: “He was at Porto, and at the same time Benfica showed interest in his brother and signed him. His father was naturally worried, because João was at Porto while his brother moved to Benfica, and so the club signed João Félix almost as a courtesy.”
Barcelona youth pathway
Mendes praised Barcelona for signing one, two or three players from the reserve team every year. He said: “The club signs one, two or three players from the reserve team every year. And when we talk about Barcelona, we are talking about one of the best clubs in the world. We can see the players who currently feature with the first team, and many of them graduated from the club's academy”
Talent and opportunity
Mendes said: “There is a lot of talent being wasted, because the talent is already there, and we can find very talented players in the third division, just as we can find very talented players in the second division. The problem is that, on many occasions, they do not find anyone to give them the opportunity.”
