Official: Sporting confirm sales of Geovany Quenda and Dário Essugo to Chelsea
Sporting confirmed on Wednesday evening that young duo Geovany Quenda and Dário Essugo have been sold to English Premier League club Chelsea for a combined transfer fee of €74.4m.
Quenda will cost the Blues €50.7m rising to €52m and will move to Stamford Bridge in the summer of 2026, while Essugo will net the Lions €22.3m and heads to London at the end of the current season when his loan at Las Palmas finishes.
Many had tipped Quenda, who is currently with Portugal’s senior squad ahead of the Nations League tie with Denmark, to be a highly-sought option for Manchester United this summer, given the player’s history with coach Ruben Amorim and United’s need to strengthen in the wing-back position.
However, according to renowned journalist Fabrizio Romano, Quenda is not minded to play in a wing-back role long term and therefore Chelsea’s traditional wide attacker system is more suitable for his long-term ambitions.
Essugo has been a revelation in La Liga this season with Las Palmas, whom he joined on a season-long loan from Sporting after his development somewhat stalled at Alvalade. The move has not only revitalised the central midfielder’s career, but also earned Sporting a substantial fee for another academy graduate.
Indeed, the short-term financial gain for Sporting is considerable, given they will receive a total of around €70m for the duo, one of whom in Quenda will remain in the ranks for the next 15 months, while the other has barely featured for the club since making an early breakthrough in the 2021/22 season. Intermediary services for the combined deals amount to €4.5m.
By @SeanGilen9