On Tuesday morning, the Portuguese press reported that Wolverhampton Wanderers loanee Gonçalo Guedes could make his debut for Benfica this week.
That’s because he was sighted in training prior to the Champions League match against RB Salzburg, and local media expected he’d be back on the field after knee surgery.
However, according to A Bola, which has remarks from Benfica manager Roger Schmidt, Guedes isn’t quite ready to play yet.
The manager began by announcing that some players returning from injury had trained with the squad, but that this does not indicate they will play against RB Salzburg.
“As I previously stated, they train alongside the group, but we’ve had to recover them from situations, and we don’t want to take any chances.” We need them, and we want them back as quickly as possible because we have a lot of games to play, but without jeopardizing their safety. “We’ll have to evaluate them and make decisions match by match to determine when they can join the team,” Schmidt stated during a press conference.
When asked about the Wolves loanee, Schmidt clarified his status, saying it will take some time for him to be fully healthy.
“He’s working hard with us; after his injury, he returned to Benfica, which we appreciate, but he’s been out for a long time.” To rebuild his confidence, he needs a few more training sessions. We don’t want to put him in any danger. I’m hoping we can put him to use quickly since we need him.”
Guedes had already been loaned out to Benfica in January, and his knee ailments had prevented him from giving his all for the Eagles. The clubs then decided to give it another go, and he is now on loan to Wolves until the summer of 2024.