Portugal international midfielder Adrien Silva has escaped his troubled spell at Leicester City by leaving England for Leonardo Jardim’s Monaco on a six-month loan deal.
Silva, who arrived in England from Sporting 18 months ago, made just 14 appearances in the Premier League, but has now re-joined his former Leões boss in Monaco, where Jardim was busy closing several signings during the last week of the transfer window.
Jardim returned as Monaco coach last week and quickly added another former Sporting man, Gelson Martins, to the ranks. He has now been joined by Silva, making it three Seleção players in the squad, with Rony Lopes recently returning to action for the Monegasques after four months out injured this season.
In Jardim’s first game back in charge, Monaco showed a marked improvement, falling to a narrow defeat in the French League Cup against Guingamp in a match where Adrien’s Portugal team-mates Rony Lopes and Gelson Martins both shone.
With the added steel provided by Adrien, Monaco would appear a good bet to pull clear of the relegation zone. The club from the Principality are currently three points adrift of safety, but it could be profitable to take advantage of with 1xbet to wager on a quick rise up the Ligue 1 table.
"I am very happy to join AS Monaco. I look forward to meeting my teammates, and doing my best to help the club reverse the situation,” Adrien said on his arrival.
Meanwhile, Monaco general manager Vadim Vasilyev added: “Adrien Silva is an experienced player who, by his level of play, will allow us to boost our midfield. His state of mind and his game intelligence will help the team to achieve our goal.”
Monaco were busy during the last days of the transfer window, adding Georges-Kevin N’Koudou from Tottenham Hotspur and Carlos Vinicius, previously on-loan at Rio Ave, on a similar deal from Italian club Napoli.
Other Portuguese on the move
Manchester United’s Portugal U21 goalkeeper Joel Pereira joined Silva in making a last-gasp move before the deadline. The 22-year-old left Old Trafford on a six-month loan deal to KV Kortrijk, who are currently 10th place in Belgium’s First Division A. Pereira has had two loan spells in Portugal, one successful at Belenenses, another less so at Vitória Setúbal. The highly rated goalkeeper could do with a sustained spell of playing time to make good on his early promise, and genting bet enables you to bet on his progress.
Elsewhere, Valencia loaned out 24-year-old defender Rúben Vezo to fellow Spanish La Liga side Levante until the end of the season and Bruno Varela moved to Ajax on loan with option to buy from Benfica. Last week Internazionale brought Cédric Soares to Italy on a loan deal from English club Southampton and Nélson Oliviera moved from Norwich City to José Gomes’ Reading in the Championship. In terms of permanent deals, Sporting youngster Tiago Djaló signed a long-term contract with AC Milan.
By Sean Gillen