FC Porto weigh up next move for Rayan, but have other options | OneFootball

The final stretch of the market promises a lot of excitement in blue and white football. In addition to nearly closed processes such as Kiwior's and Rodrigo Mora's dossier - with the player standing firm in Al Ittihad's demands - negotiations continue to strengthen the squad led by Francesco Farioli. Rayan, a 19-year-old promise from Vasco da Gama, is among FC Porto's SAD priorities. The dragons have reportedly submitted an initial proposal in the order of 17 million euros, but the Rio club prefers to keep the youngster and demands much higher values.

Admar Lopes, general director of Vasco, stated on Tuesday at a press conference that "there is no ongoing negotiation", implying that the Porto offer may have been rejected. Still, Vasco's officials would welcome a sale around €25 M, so it is plausible that there may be room for negotiation until the close of the summer market, scheduled for 23:59 on Monday in Portugal. Rayan's contract ends at the end of 2026, a circumstance that could favor FC Porto, which is considering the next steps without ruling out other alternatives identified by the structure.

An international for Brazil's youth teams - winner of the South American U-20 this year -, Rayan has long been pointed out as one of the most promising talents in Brazilian football. For the season he is having at Vasco da Gama, he is already considered a safe element, with a wide margin for progress. Since the beginning of 2025 and including all competitions, he has scored 10 goals and one assist in 36 matches for the cross-maltino emblem.

With remarkable explosion and a prominent physical complexion - 1.85 meters tall -, Rayan is left-footed and prefers to play as a winger on the right side. This position is precisely one that André Villas-Boas and FC Porto's management team identified as lacking, but the player also offers other solutions. Feeling comfortable as a second striker and even as a forward, he could become a versatile option for Farioli.

Monitored by FC Porto for several months, the player entered the list of priorities of the dragons, who are now trying to get ahead of top European clubs interested. Sporting was once associated with his name and, more recently, AC Milan may have sounded out the possibility of signing him. Before that, Barcelona and Lyon had also shown interest. In 2022, Rayan stood out by scoring 29 goals in 34 games for Vasco da Gama's U-17 team.

"You have to press and come back! What are you going to score from? You're going to give a counter-attack!", Diniz fired, visibly irritated. At the end of the match, the coach explained the reason for the reprimand: "When the ball comes in, we play with a higher line, so it's more open. The full-back has to jump faster, the line has to run and Rayan has to be closer to come back. We didn't do any of that. There were three mistakes in that goal", he said, about Corinthians' 1-0. Vasco ended up losing 3-2, although Rayan scored the second goal for the visiting team.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.