Enzo Fernandez: Roger Schmidt says he only wants players who are ‘happy to play’ and ‘passionate’

It has not taken long for Benfica boss Roger Schmidt to make it clear how he feels about Enzo Fernandez’s British record move to Chelsea.

The 22-year-old World Cup winner, who was Chelsea’s No 1 January target, signed for a sensational £107million on an an eight-and-a-half year deal through to June 2031.

At one point, it looked as though Chelsea would fail to get the deal for the 22-year-old World Cup winner over the line – but both parties finally made a breakthrough just minutes before the 11pm deadline.

Enzo Fernandez signed for Chelsea after a sensational £107m move on an an eight-and-a-half year deal

Benfica boss Roger Schmidt hit out at Fernandez, insisting he only wants players who are ‘happy to play’

Benfica left Fernandez out of their squad to face Arouca on Tuesday – which they went on to win 3-0 – and he also missed training on Monday. 

Speaking after the game, Schmidt was evidently ready to move on without the midfield star.

‘It’s always difficult to lose a good player in the winter market, but today we showed that we are a good team without him, that we are capable of playing good football without him, that the players are focused on getting the most points, to be champions,’ he said.

‘Benfica is much bigger than a player. We just need players who are happy to play for Benfica, who are passionate. 

‘We had a player who wanted to leave and a club willing to pay the clause, we couldn’t do anything. We accepted and looked into it.’

Earlier in the window, Schmidt had accused Chelsea of being disrespectful in their pursuits of Fernandez, insisting they had no intention of paying his sensational buyout clause.

World Cup winner Fernandez was left out of Benfica’s 3-0 victory over Arouca ahead of his move

It’s a bitter blow for Benfica to lose their star midfielder who had notched up the second most assists (five) in the Primeira Liga, while he topped the charts for passes completed (1,432) and final-third passes completed (372).

Benfica confirmed the move in a statement in the early hours of Wednesday morning after the clubs completed the necessary paperwork prior to the deadline. 

The Portuguese club also removed Fernandez from their list of players on the club website.

Meanwhile, the Blues teased an announcement by changing their Twitter bio to an Argentina flag followed by a trophy emoji.

The signing brings Chelsea’s total spending in January to more than £323m. 

On a busy day at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea also saw midfielder Jorginho depart on a £12m move to London rivals Arsenal.