RYan Flamingo is the most recent central defender to be associated with Benfica’s interest, following the departures of Nicolás Otamendi (to River Plate, at ‘zero cost’) and António Silva (to Bournemouth, in exchange for 25 million euros, a sum that could rise to 30 million euros, subject to the achievement of objectives).
The Dutch newspaper Eindhovens Dagblad reports, this Friday, that the management led by Rui Costa will have opened a dialogue with PSV with a view to acquiring the 23-year-old player, but emphasizes that this will always be an operation that will be difficult to complete, due to a series of circumstances.
Firstly, the under-21 international for the Netherlands has a contract valid until June 2029, and those responsible for the club have already made it known that they cannot accept releasing him for less than 20 million euros, even though this is far from the level of consistency that Peter Bosz’s technical team wants.
The start of the new 2026/27 sporting season has, moreover, been an example of this, as it was directly linked to the defeat suffered in the Super Cup, against AZ Alkmaar, by a categorical 0-4, before ‘redeeming’ itself, last weekend, with a goal in the opening round of the Eredivisie, which earned a draw with Fortuna Sittard.
Furthermore, the Boeren remain active in the summer transfer market in search of a new option for the deeper sector of the field (Lutsharel Geertruida, from Leipzig, is their favorite target, but competition from Feyenoord and Ajax must be taken into account), and, until they recruit him, they refuse to negotiate the young promise.
After all, who is Ryan Flamingo?
Born in Blaricum, but with Surinamese ancestry, Ryan Flamingo completed his training at Almere City, where he showed his potential from an early age, so much so that, in 2021, when he was just 18 years old, he moved to Sassuolo, first, on loan, and then, permanently, for close to 100 thousand euros.
The experience in Italian football ended up, however, not going as the central defender intended, so much so that he had consecutive loans to Vitesse and Utrecht, before being sold to PSV, in 2024, for close to three million euros, without having played a single game for the main team.
At the Philips Stadion, he immediately won the starting spot in the back of the defense, and never let go, so much so that, in the space of two years, he was used in a total of 93 official matches (with seven goals and four assists in between), contributing to the achievement of two national champion titles and a Dutch Super Cup.
List of central defenders appointed to Benfica increases without stopping
In addition to Ryan Flamingo, Josip Sutalo (from Ajax), Jonathan Jesus (from Cruzeiro), Fikayo Tomori (from AC Milan), Taylor Harwood-Bellis (from Southampton), Tosin Adarabioyo (from Chelsea) or… Ibrahima Ba, who would end up leaving Famalicão for Sporting, for 21.25 million euros, have also been appointed to the center of Benfica’s defense.
