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When you think of SL Benfica, one of the first things that comes to your mind is that they are a club which manages to produce top players every season who go on to star for the club and beyond. Before their journey to the first team many will spend time with the B team, playing in Portugal’s second tier, to get valuable experience in a senior league which prepares these young talents for the top tier through valuable experience. One player who has done exactly that is 21-Year-Old Heriberto Tavares, who has been a star for Benfica B this season and looks more than ready for a first team opportunity.
The Winger has been scoring goals for fun as he sits as Benfica B’s top goalscorer with 12 goals in 25 games, whilst also assisting 3 in that time, in a season which sees his team sit 12th in the league despite his impressive individual efforts. Heriberto Tavares’ great form has not gone unnoticed by his club, as recently he signed a long term deal at Benfica which will see him contracted until 2023 - which shows that Benfica have a lot of faith in him being a first team player in the future, and with the way he is playing right now an opportunity in the first team is definitely on the cards.
Joining Benfica in the summer of 2016 from Belenenses, Heriberto Tavares has spent his past 2 seasons playing for the B team. In his first season for the club he showed them exactly why they took a chance on him, as he bagged 11 goals and 6 assists in 41 games and finished as his sides’ top goalscorer, 3 more than second placed Diogo Gonçalves. This great goal-scoring form from out on the wing was a sign of things to come for the youngster.
Internationally, Heriberto Tavares has represented Portugal at numerous youth levels including most recently a spell with Portugal’s U21 side, where he had a 33 minute cameo against Switzerland in a 2-1 victory which helped his side get 3 valuable points in the European U21 Championship Qualifications. Tavares has also represented Portugal at U20, U16 and U15 levels.
The 21-Year-Old is a natural finisher who has shown that he can score goals with both feet and his head. Of his 12 goals this season, 3 have come from his left foot, 6 have come with his right foot, with 3 goals from headed efforts. None of his goals have been from outside the box. A lot of his finishes have come from shooting across the keeper, a reliable strategy seeing as he sits as top goalscorer. A few of his goals have come from quick snapshots, like his goal against UD Oliveirense, involving a fantastic finish into the bottom corner that came from nothing.
Heriberto Tavares has proven to be a reliable player who can get goals when they really matter, as only 3 of his 12 goals have come when his side are winning, whilst 6 have come when his side are drawing the game suggesting he can be the difference between 1 and 3 points. His importance to the B team can be perfectly shown in a game against União Madeira, where his side were 1-0 down, and Tavares scored 2 goals which turned the deficit to give his side the all-important 3 points.
Even though he is the top scorer for his side, and the second top scorer overall in the league, it is only right we talk about Heriberto Tavares’ other great attributes. His impressive pace allows him to take the ball past defenders with ease, as shown by his recent performance against Cova Piedade where he completed 5 successful dribbles past players (100% success rate). Tavares has played 2153 minutes so far this season for Benfica B, displaying the confidence the club have in the youngster.
With Heriberto Tavares seemingly getting a goal or assist every other game, his chances in making the first team increase week-on-week. When the opportunity arises - which it definitely will - it is most likely that the 21-year-old will land on two feet and be yet another player on the long list of Benfica youngsters who have become a star for the Lisbon based club