UPDATE: 5 things to know about Chelsea’s latest signing Diego Moreira

Chelsea have formally announced the signing of 18-year-old Portugal Under-21 winger, Diego Moreira from Benfica.

Moreira’s arrival on a free transfer follows on from the signings of forwards Nicolas Jackson from Villarreal and Christopher Nkunku from RB Leipzig, while Ruben Loftus-Cheek has completed a permanent move to AC Milan.

The Portuguese winger joined Benfica from Standard Liege in 2020 and played an important role in the club’s 2022 UEFA Youth League triumph, after grabbing two assists in the final, which saw Salzburg defeated 6-0.

Here are five things you should know about the new Chelsea signing.

Moreira was born in Belgium in 2004 to a father who was from Guinea-Bissau but also held Portuguese citizenship. This makes him eligible to represent both Belgium and Portugal.

Diego Moreira’s father is former Guinea-Bissau international Almami Moreira, who played professionally at Belgian side Standard Liege and from his mother’s side, he is the grandson of Helmut Graf, a German-born footballer who also played for the Belgian club from 1976 to 1982.

Moreira’s football career really kicked off after he moved to Lisbon, Portugal, where his father lived in 2020.

He signed a professional contract with Benfica and started to play with the under-23 side in the Liga Revelação midway through the 2020–21 season. During the following season, he became a regular starter with the U23 team and made his professional debut for Benfica B.

Moreira first appeared for the Benfica first team in May 2022, when he came on as a lively figure in a 2-0 league win at Pacos Ferreira. He added further minutes to his tally last August when he entered the fray against Midtjylland in a Champions League qualifier.

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Moreira is a quick-footed 18-year-old talent with bags of skill and plenty of upside. Having made his senior debut against Pacos de Ferreira in May 2022, Moreira boasts 10 goals and 11 assists from a total of 64 appearances.

He also scored an impressive five goals and contributed seven assists in just 15 appearances in the UEFA Youth League, a competition his team clinched in 2022.