SVILAR

Graduated at Anderlecht, Mile Svilar soon began to stand out in the club’s youth teams, this after having had the chance of, with only ten years of age, making some training sessions at Chelsea, where he met his great friend and “Benfiquista” Matic.

Mile Svilar stood out for his goalkeeping skills, but also for what he did daily off the pitch, he was labelled by teammates and coaches as “working machine”. Already a Belgium Under-19 international, he was coveted by several European top clubs – he had been followed by Benfica since the age of 14 … –, but, in the moment to decide the right space to develop and to win, he didn’t even waver: “This was the right choice”, said the young player, after shaking hands with the president Luís Filipe Vieira.

On October 14, 2017, against Olhanense for the Portuguese Cup, Svilar made his debut with an eagle on his chest and became, with 18 years, 1 month and 18 days, the youngest goalkeeper ever to defend Benfica’s goal in the domestic competitions.

Four days later, he made his debut in the Champions League against Manchester United and, at the end of the match, José Mourinho paid him a big compliment: "He will be great. He will be one of the great goalkeepers."