The golden crossroads is really happening as João Félix seals a €50 million move to Al-Nassr. This transfer saga is the golden crossroads that combines wealth and dwindling European potential. The Portuguese winger João Félix has completed a €50 million transfer from Chelsea to Saudi Pro League super club Al-Nassr. The deal is made of up €30 million up-front with an additional €20 million in performance-based add-ons. It comes after close return to his boyhood club at Benfica, and demonstrates Al-Nassr’s persistent desire to be the best.
The Deal Dynamics
Chelsea recouped nearly all of the £45 million (£44.5m) they paid Atlético Madrid for Félix just last summer. This was aided by a £5 million loan fee from AC Milan. Moreover, there he spent the latter half of the 2024-25 season scoring three goals in 21 appearances. The swift negotiations saw Al-Nassr outmaneuver Benfica. This had scheduled a medical for Félix in Lisbon before the Saudi club’s late intervention. Financial terms proved decisive. Benfica demanded a significant wage cut, while Al-Nassr offered a lucrative €6 million annual salary. That was, however, far beyond the Portuguese club’s reach.
Ronaldo, Jesus, and the Portuguese Pipeline
Félix will find as much reason to celebrate in Al-Nassr’s Portuguese mass as Government House, particularly with Cristiano Ronaldo as the captain and Jorge Jesus as coach this past July (who Félix knew from his time at Benfica). The duo lobbied the 25-year-old, assuring him Al-Nassr is not a retirement league–but rather a competitive project. Moreover, they gauged the excitement with a recently relegated Al-Nassr club that finished in 3rd place, 13 points behind champions Al-Ittihad, and are hungry to win trophies. Félix trained with the Al-Nassr squad in Austria days before the signing was announced and succeeded Ronaldo at Al-Nassr. In fact, after training, the players snapped a few photos touched that he is now a member of the famous club with Cristiano Ronaldo, which was beyond special—a transfer process where a legend passes the torch to a new star, a passing of the Portuguese guard.
A Career at Crossroads
The golden crossroads for Félix’s decline from teenage prodigy to European journeyman forms a sobering backdrop. Once football’s third-most expensive player after a €126 million move to Atlético Madrid in 2019, he never scored more than 10 goals a season in Europe. Coaches like Diego Simeone and Mauricio Pochettino grew frustrated with his defensive apathy and inconsistent work rate. As agent Jen Mendelewitsch scathingly noted: “He’s an ATM machine… He long ago stopped playing football. He’s a case study in how not to manage a talent”.
Tactical Fit and Al-Nassr’s Vision
Félix will likely play as a second striker or possibly an attacking midfielder, behind Ronaldo – a position that will draw on his creativity with less defensive responsibilities. His signing is a signal that the club is ambitious to dominate domestically and across Asia in the AFC Champions League. Assuming that Jesus can implement a style of play that resembles that at Benfica and Flamengo, Félix may be able to recapture the form that saw him awarded the “Golden Boy” in 2019 in Europe.
Chelsea’s Calculated Exit
For Chelsea, the sale is a strategic win. Excluding Félix from their Club World Cup squad (which they won in July) telegraphed his exit, and the €50 million fee aids compliance with UEFA’s financial regulations after a £27 million fine. The Blues will reinvest in targets like RB Leipzig’s Xavi Simons and Ajax defender Jorrel Hato, continuing their squad overhaul.
What’s Next?
Félix reportedly views this as a two-year chapter before targeting a 2027 Benfica return. But however, for now, Al-Nassr offers redemption—a stage to silence critics or confirm unfulfilled promise. As one Portuguese journalist lamented: “He’s just a five-minute segment in transfer market shows now”. In Riyadh, he has 90 minutes every week to rewrite that narrative.
As featured on Chelseanews.com
