Andreas Schjelderup: The Rising Star of European Football

Andreas Schjelderup is having the kind of summer that changes careers.

A few sharp, fearless cameos at a World Cup with Norway, and the Benfica winger has gone from a smart scout’s tip to one of the hottest attacking prospects in Europe. The list of clubs circling him reads like a who’s who of modern powerbrokers: Liverpool, Tottenham, Atletico Madrid, Milan, Como – and now, whisper it, Barcelona.

Benfica’s €30m bet

Benfica know exactly what they’ve got on their hands.

Schjelderup is valued at around €30 million, according to TuttoMercatoWeb – roughly double what Club Brugge were willing to put on the table in January. Back then, the Belgian side thought they were close, only for the deal to vanish in an instant.

The turning point? A match-winning brace against Real Madrid that forced José Mourinho to slam the door on any mid-season exit. Once Schjelderup dismantled one of Europe’s giants, Benfica stopped listening. The price went up, the conversation changed.

Parma felt that shift as well. CEO Federico Cherubini has already admitted they came close in the winter window, only to fall just short. In hindsight, they were trying to sneak through a door that Benfica had already started to bolt.

A winger built for the modern game

On the pitch, the appeal is obvious.

A left-footed right winger who can drift to either flank, Schjelderup offers that rare blend of versatility and end product that top clubs crave. Last season he produced 10 goals and seven assists in 43 appearances across all competitions for Benfica – not just flashes of promise, but sustained contribution in a demanding environment.

He plays with a sharp change of pace, cutting inside to threaten goal or slipping passes into the spaces defenders hate to turn into. At 22, he is still learning the nuances of elite-level football, yet his numbers already stack up against far more established names.

Those numbers are why Liverpool and Tottenham are tracking him. They are why Atletico Madrid, forever in search of direct, incisive forwards, are watching closely. They are why Milan and even ambitious Como have joined the queue from Serie A, sensing an opportunity before his value explodes again.

World Cup stage, global spotlight

If last season put him on the radar, the World Cup has thrown a spotlight on him.

Coming off the bench, Schjelderup helped Norway turn a tight, tense contest against Senegal into a 3-2 win that sealed a place in the last 16. It was the kind of impact performance that sticks in the minds of sporting directors and head coaches alike: a young attacker stepping into a high-pressure game and tilting it his team’s way.

From that moment, the tone of the interest changed. He was no longer just a promising Benfica winger with good numbers. He was a World Cup difference-maker.

Barcelona lurking in the background

And then there is Barcelona.

His name has been floated as a potential replacement for Marcus Rashford, whose future is the subject of growing speculation. For a player still carving out his place in the game, being mentioned in that context says plenty about how he is viewed across the continent.

Schjelderup, to his credit, has kept his feet on the ground. Asked about the rumours, he didn’t bite.

“It would be fantastic if those rumours were true, but at the moment I don’t know anything concrete,” he said.

Measured. Calm. No grand declarations, no public flirting with a move. Just a young player aware of the noise, but not willing to get swept away by it.

Benfica hold all the cards – for now

What happens next feels inevitable: a bidding war, or something close to it.

With his value rising and his performances matching the hype, Benfica will not be short of suitors when the market truly awakens. They have time on their side, a strong negotiating position and a player whose stock climbs with every decisive touch.

The clubs chasing him, though, know how quickly these situations move. Wait too long, and €30 million can become €40 million. Or the door can close entirely.

Schjelderup has already shown he can change a game. The next question is simple: which club will let him change their future?