“I would like to end my career at Benfica”

Nélson Semedo left Benfica, but Nélson Semedo didn't forget Benfica. This was made very clear in the interview of the right-back  to BTV's Alta Fidelidade program.

Member of the eagles squad that won the four consecutive title in 2016/17, the right-back from Barcelona believes Benfica will keep winning titles.

“Yes, I believe. Surely my teammates and the coaching staff also believe in it and the supporters who are with them will help them a lot in the turnaround”, he stated.

The player also left a message of encouragement to the work group led by Rui Vitória.

“Keep being who you are and being the family we were last year. I'm sure you continue to be a great group because that's crucial. We always felt like a family in the dressing room and I want to thank them for everything they have done for me, "said the Portuguese international, who owes almost everything to the Club. "Benfica was very important. If it had not been for Benfica I'd never fulfilled my dreams, "he said.

In addition to his teammates, there is one person who the footballer does not forget: "I want to thank the president a lot for the confidence he has had in me, the coaching staff, my colleagues."

The right-back is at Barcelona, but he doesn't forget his favorite club

For Nélson Semedo, to wear Benfica's jersey was the icing on the cake . “I already was a Benfica fan before playing for Benfica. All became more special, because created a special bond with the players that were there and the coaching staff helped me a lot. I will always have them in my heart”, he confessed.

To be four-time champions for Benfica was amazing. “It's a moment I will never forget. It was very special for me and for all Benfica supporters, because it was something unprecedented, it was a very special moment and I hope they can celebrate again this year, and I'll will be there to celebrate with them”, said Nélson Semedo.

Although settled in the capital of Catalonia, the right-back remains tuned in the actuality of Benfica.

The player left, but he remains a supporter. "I follow Benfica whenever I can and I would not stop felling Benfica just because I left. I feel the club in the same way, or even more so because now I am all the more a supporter. Benfica will alwayes be my club.”

The new experience in Spain has just begun, but Nélson Semedo does not close the door to a return.

“Let's see how things go. Now it is not possible to return, but who knows [one day]... It would be good to end at my club, in my city and with the Benfica fans”, he admitted.

THE SIMILARATIES BETWEEN THE INTEGRATION AT LUZ AND AT CAMP NOU

“Luisão and Pizzi were the teammates ” who help and made Nélson Semedo's integration at Benfica easier. “In general they all welcomed me and I grateful for that”, added the player, who compared the way he arrived at the club and now at Barcelona.

“I think it was no different, all Barcelona players also welcomed me very well and that helped in my integration. But I will miss Benfica”, said the player, who feels that he is now fulfilling" another dream "in a club he also admires" a lot "

AND IT ALL BEGAN...

At Caixa Futebol Campus, at the of his youth training process, Nélson Semedo was coached by Hélder Cristóvão, with whom he learned a lot of things. “I had excellent coaches. The gaffer Hélder Cristóvão, who transformed me into a right-back… It was an important moment, if not the most important moment of my career. I have to thank him a lot, because if I'm her today, I owe it to him”, he stated.

“Benfica does not only teaches how to be a player, it also teaches how to ben a man, how to become better persons”, he added, talking about the club values. 

The "red wave is vital to win the fifth consecutive title.

“To the supporters… I ask you to never stop believing in Benfica, I ask you to believe and to keep supporting, because you everything is easier. The supporter is the one that is behind the team in the good and in the bad moments, and are those supporters that we want to be with us to celebrate the fifth consecutive title”, he concluded. 

Text: Márcia Dores and Marco Rebelo