Benfica is known for producing great players, and this list shows how successful the Portuguese club is at doing that. While their great academy has raised some famous players, it's clear that they know just how to find the best players in Latin America and often bring them to the club.
In this post, our football expert, Kate Richardson, reveals her top picks for the greatest Benfica players of all time.
The best Benfica players, from free-scoring forwards to rock-solid centre-backs and goalkeepers
Below are some of the best players that have ever played for Benfica:
Jan Oblak
Oblak joined Atletico Madrid from Benfica for €16 million in 2014, cementing his position as one of the world's top goalkeepers. It takes a lot to surpass Ederson of Manchester City, but he has done it.
With 284 games played in La Liga, he has a superb record of only 203 goals conceded and 142 clean sheets. That is, to be honest, completely outstanding. Though he’s got some really strong defence, he has already become one of the greatest goalkeepers of his time.
Despite the several criticisms for his subpar performances last season, Oblak is still among the finest across the globe.
Rúben Dias
After joining Manchester City for about £61 million in 2020, the Portugal centre-back has been absolutely dominant. He’s got four Premier League titles to his name and quickly established himself as one of the league's top defenders.
Interestingly, the 27-year-old’s contribution to the already absurdly talented team was acknowledged when he was named Premier League Player of the Season. And, he still makes an impression in the center of the City defense.
“He is a guy that can play every three days”, according to Pep Guardiola’s statement in January 2021.
He has lightning-fast recovery times, amazing abilities, and a profound grasp of the game.
David Luiz
After leaving the Eagles in 2011, the 35-year-old continued to play at a high level for ten years. When he’s on his game, he’s a formidable opponent, but he can be a puzzling player at times.
There’s also an impressive collection of trophies as well. He won the Primeira Liga with Benfica in 2010, two French crowns with PSG, and then came back to win the Premier League with Chelsea in 2016–17.
Despite several defensive disasters, Luiz spent two seasons in North London with Arsenal, where he shocked everyone by joining the club in 2019 and helping them win the FA Cup.
His image as a bad defender was sometimes accurate, but mostly unfair, since he went on to be one of the best ball-playing defenders in the world for a while. Besides, everyone remembers him fondly because he was such a good leader. In 2012, he won the Champions League, and the next year, he beat his old team, Benfica, to win the Europa League with Chelsea.
João Cancelo
Cancelo, like many other Benfica players who eventually found themselves at Manchester City, had an unusual path to get there. He had been on loan to Valencia in 2014, where he wasn’t exactly rated.
After spending time on loan at Inter Milan (typically in a left-back role), he moved on to Juventus. He then joined City in a trade for Danilo.
He has quickly risen to the position of world-class defence while playing on both wings for City. His exceptional talent allows him to frequently play in the middle of the pitch, and he was a major part of City’s success until his unexpected departure from Pep Guardiola and transfer to Bayern Munich stunned everyone.
He subsequently went to Barcelona and now plays for Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia.
Nemanja Matic
After spending time at Benfica and Chelsea, Matic returned to Stamford Bridge and established himself as a top European defensive midfielder.
While playing for west London, he was instrumental in winning two Premier League titles, after which he rejoined José Mourinho at Manchester United.
“Nemanja is a Manchester United player and a José Mourinho player. He embodies all the qualities we look for in a footballer: dedication, perseverance, ambition, and team player," Mourinho said upon his arrival at Old Trafford.
The Portuguese coach signed him for a second time at Roma because he loved him so much.
Enzo Fernandez
Although he barely spent half a season with Benfica FC, the club got seven times as much as they paid to get him — a record-breaking British transfer fee. Fernandez stunned the world after a remarkable performance at the 2022 World Cup which saw him win the Best Young Player Award in Qatar, in addition to clinching the trophy with Argentina.
In the months that followed the World Cup, Enzo was involved in a lengthy transfer saga, having attracted the interest of top clubs like:
- Chelsea
- Real Madrid
- Paris Saint-Germain
The Argentine-midfielder would later sign for Chelsea in a £106 million transfer deal with Benfica. Before then, bookmakers had 2/13 odds for the Blues to sign the star. Despite signing a long-term contract, bookies still have odds up for the next club Fernandez will join.
You can wager on the best odds for the next European giant that Fernandez will transfer to next. And if you're looking for the best bookies that offer safety and security while you bet on players, you can try this list of the licensed ones by MightyTips.
Bernardo Silva
Despite Silva’s limited playing time (he featured in just three senior games for the Eagles), Benfica fans can boast the fact that their academy raised an exceptional player.
Manchester City paid about £44 million for the attacking midfielder, and that was shortly after he helped Monaco win Ligue 1 and get to the semi-finals of the 2017 Champions League.
Under Guardiola, the Portugal international has become one of the best midfielders in the world. He starts most of his games for both his club and his country.
He’s simply mesmerising to watch.
Ángel Di María
Di María was clearly the best player at Real Madrid when the team won the 2014 La Decima. If he hadn’t sustained injuries in the final, he’d have probably helped Argentina win the World Cup that year. Although he earned redemption for that at Qatar 2022.
Interestingly, he had a comeback at PSG after a difficult and frustrating 2014-15 season at Manchester United under Louis van Gaal, and he was still a key player last season despite Neymar and Lionel Messi’s best efforts. While with the Parisiens, he won six Ligue 1 championships and amassed 92 goals and over 100 assists in 295 matches.
After bidding farewell to the Parc des Princes and another top club in Europe, Di María played for Juventus, before returning to Benfica.
He has again doen wall in Lisbon, but fans of Benfica will never forget his untapped potential from 2007-2010, when he drove the club to a title in his final season of his first spell at the Estádio da Luz. One of the most gifted artists of his day, he will go down in history books.
João Félix
Among the most promising young players in football, João Félix enjoyed a sensational breakout year as a youngster with SL Benfica. And as a matter of fact, this contributed to their run to the quarter-finals of the Europa League with 11 assists and 20 goals.
He was the player chosen to replace Antoine Griezmann at Atletico Madrid for a £120 million transfer. Even though he did not play up to his potential as an attacker for a defence-oriented team, Félix contributed to their La Liga victory in 2020-21.
Now together with Fernandez at Chelsea, he still has time on his side to resurrect his career.
Nélson Semedo
Originally from Lisbon, the right back signed for Barcelona in 2017 for over €30.5 million.
After a good start, his defensive game started to show signs of weaknesses, and a low point was when the team was completely battered in Barcelona's embarrassing 8-2 Champions League loss to Bayern Munich.
Later on, he moved to Wolves and has done pretty well there, but he probably never fully recovered from the thrashing he got from Alphonso Davies.
Future pearls
As we look to the future, it’s exciting to think about the next generation of stars who will emerge from the Benfica ranks and make their mark on the football world, with Álvaro Carreras, Tomás Araújo and Andreas Schjelderup all tipped for a golden future.
