Panetolikos announce partnership with Portuguese giants Benfica



Panetolikos have reached an agreement to partner with Benfica on a variety of football matters.

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Greek Super League side Panetolikos recently announced the signing of a partnership deal with Benfica. Both sides made a formal announcement through their websites that acted as an official statement regarding the agreement. The alliance represented a joint effort undertaken by the clubs’ respective presidents, Luís Filipe Vieira and Gerasimos Belevonis.

The partnership allows for close cooperation between the two clubs to sign players either in permanent moves or on loan and also the ability to exchange information, ideas, and experiences between the respective sides.

The announcement is the culmination of six years of business between the two teams which began in 2013 when Panetolikos signed Carlos Acues from Benfica B in a two-year deal. That set the stage for a healthy relationship between the two parties and more moves followed including the signing of Mozambique attacker Clesio in 2016 by Panetolikos. The Greek club have since taken players from Benfica youth sides on loan such as Diego Lopes, Guga, and Pedro Amaral in recent seasons. The current campaign sees Benfica B midfielder and Portuguese youth international Dalcio come to Greece on loan for Panetolikos.

Benfica, on the other hand, will benefit by also being able to keep tabs on young Greek talent such as Giorgos Liavas, an 18-year-old defender whom the Portuguese side have reportedly shown an interest in. Furthermore, than purely snapping up promising Panetolikos players, Benfica now have a base in the region in order to pursue other Greek and foreign talent. Andreas Samaris and Odisseas Vlachodimos are two Greek internationals currently on the books of the Lisbon club. In the past, Greek players such as Giorgos Karagounis, Kostas Katsouranis, and Kostas Mitroglou have played for the Aguias.

All in all, this should undoubtedly help Panetolikos in bringing quality, young foreign talent to the club while at the same time raising the profile of the Greek team as they secure an alliance with such a prestigious and historic club.