Socceroos defender Alessandro Circati is making a pre-season move from Serie A club Parma to Portuguese giants Benfica for what Flashscore has confirmed to be a fee of €18-20m (AU$29.4m – $32.7m) plus add-ons after the two clubs completed their advanced negotiations earlier this week.
Circati had long ago come to personal terms with Benfica before the clubs settled on financial matters, with reports last month suggesting that Parma were asking for more than €30m from high-profile Italian sides Inter Milan and Juventus.
The 22-year-old had established himself as a key member of the defensive structures of both Parma and the Australia national team and, as a smart ball-playing defender with tactical intelligence, was an attractive off-season proposition for clubs looking to use their back four or five as the basis of their attacking buildup.
His maturity and leadership beyond his years is also an enormous asset that he’ll bring to Benfica, highlighted by his recent feat of becoming the youngest Socceroos captain in more than 40 years.
The details of the add-ons that Benfica will pay to Parma are yet to be revealed, but the total package is almost certain to eclipse the Australian record of €23m (AU$38m) that Leicester City paid Stoke City for the services of defender Harry Souttar in January 2023.
It caps off a remarkable transfer window for Australian stars after their run to the World Cup Round of 32, with Nestory Irankunda and Lucas Herrington both coming agonisingly close to breaking Souttar’s transfer record.
Irankunda reportedly attracted a package worth about €18m ($29.4m) to move from Championship club Watford to Benfica rivals Sporting CP, just days before 18-year-old Herrington was purchased from American club Colorado Rapids to become the only Australian player of the 2026/27 Premier League season for a flat fee close to €18m ($29.4m).
Herrington smashed the Hull City transfer record and signed a five-year deal with a 15% sell-on clause, rubbing salt into the wound of former A-League club Brisbane Roar who bought back their sell-on clause from Colorado for a six-figure sum, costing them an estimated AU$5m.
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