Joao Felix: All You Need To Know

Arsenal and Manchester United are reportedly interested in signing Joao Felix, so ahead of a January move here's all you need to know about Atletico Madrid's Portuguese star.

Who is Joao Felix?

Joao Felix Sequeira, to give him his full name, is a 23-year-old Portugal international forward who plays his club football in Spain with Atletico Madrid.

He tried to make it as a youth at Porto but was released and moved to their rivals Benfica when he was just 15.

In 2018/19, his breakthrough season at Benfica, he scored 20 goals. Kai Havertz and Jadon Sancho were the only teenagers across Europe's big leagues who contributed more goals and assists.

What type of forward is Joao Felix?

A very versatile one. He started out life at Benfica as the second striker alongside Haris Seferovic and thrived in the role. At Atletico, however, his role has been less easily defined.

Recalled on Thursday for Atletico's 2-0 win over Elche, he played on the left side of an attacking trident with Alvaro Morata and Antoine Griezmann.

But he has also played for Diego Simeone as the second striker and also in a deeper No.10 role, with many judges suggesting he is born to play in that Lionel Messi position.

How much did Joao Felix cost Atletico Madrid?

Atletico paid just over £110million when they signed him from Benfica in July 2019, making him the fourth most expensive player on earth at the time and the second most expensive teenager behind Kylian Mbappe.

How has Joao Felix done at Atletico Madrid?

Mixed would perhaps be fair. Injuries have certainly hindered his progress, though so too has trying to find an identity in Simeone's plans.

He started only 13 matches during Atletico's title-winning season in 2020/21, yet 12 months later was being named player of the season after scoring 10 goals and contributing six assists.

This season, though, relations between Simeone and Felix have not been good, with the Portuguese ace starting just six La Liga matches and three Champions League group games.

Did Joao Felix have a good World Cup with Portugal?

He did, scoring once in the 3-2 group-stage triumph over Ghana and also producing a pair of assists as Portugal reached the quarter-finals where they were eliminated by Morocco.

Indeed, it has often been said of Felix that he performs better for his country than his club.

Does Joao Felix want to leave the Spanish side?

Yes, and if reports are to be believed the breakdown between player and manager reached a new low in the Champions League draw against Club Brugge in October, when he was three times sent out to warm up but left on the bench despite the Spaniards chasing a goal.

Apparently, straight after that he told agent Jorge Mendes he wanted out of the Wanda Metropolitano in the next window, and during the World Cup Atletico's board declared they wanted, albeit reluctantly, to sell him.

It is believed Atletico are looking for a loan deal until the summer ahead of a big-money move.

So Arsenal or Manchester United – are they the only interested clubs?

The Red Devils were first out of the blocks, especially having offloaded Cristiano Ronaldo.

Arsenal also voiced an interest and that voice grew louder once it became clear that Brazilian ace Gabriel Jesus was going to be out until the end of February following knee surgery.

Chelsea are also monitoring events, though all three clubs seem to be put off by paying wages and an £8m loan fee.

Bayern Munich were early suitors but the financial implications saw them back off very quickly.

Would Joao Felix be an automatic first-teamer at either Arsenal or United?

As ever with these things, it's almost impossible to know.

Felix has stacks of top-division and Champions League pedigree and you could easily see him striking up a relationship with Portugal team-mate Bruno Fernandes at Old Trafford.

But where? On the left-hand side of United's three where Marcus Rashford is finding his feet? Or through the middle on his own where he isn't at his most effective?

Arsenal's front four is a lot more fluid but again, the Gunners are looking for a focal point at No.9 while Jesus recovers from injury, and that's simply not the place to get the best out of the 23-year-old.