The 4 players Arsenal signed from the Primeira Liga & how they fared

Arsenal signed Fabio Vieira from Porto this summer – but they’ve not had much success with players from the Primeira Liga.

Vieira cost the Gunners around £36million and has become just the fifth player to move directly from the Portuguese top flight to Arsenal. 

We’ve taken a look at the previous four and how they fared at Arsenal. Note: we’ve not included any academy graduates that didn’t make any first-team appearances. 

Stefan Schwarz

After helping Sweden to a third-place finish at the 1994 World Cup, Schwarz decided to leave Benfica and joined Arsenal in a £1.8millon deal.

The midfielder was initially billed as a playmaker who could fill the void left by David Rocastle, but he instead became the water carrier under George Graham.

His arrival also coincided with a transitional period for the Gunners and they had a disastrous season in the Premier League, finishing in 12th place.

Schwarz was still a pivotal figure in Arsenal’s run to the 1995 European Cup Winners’ Cup final, scoring a late equaliser against Sampdoria in the semi-finals. 

But their 2-1 defeat to Real Zaragoza in the final proved to be his 45th and final appearance for the club. After Graham was replaced by Bruce Rioch, Arsenal signed David Platt and Schwarz was allowed to join Fiorentina in a £2.5mllion move. 

“I can’t say George Graham did anything wrong at Arsenal because he won so much, but it was a very direct way of playing – more than I was used to,” he told FourFourTwo in 2021.

“I wanted to be utilised in more of an attacking sense. If the style had been slightly different, maybe I would have made an even bigger impact.”

He later returned to England with Sunderland, who insisted on a clause in his contract preventing him from going into outer space. And no, we’re not making this up.

Stefan Schwarz Vs Sampdoria in the 2nd leg of the cup winners cup semi final. pic.twitter.com/uFGLRnvAer

— 90sArsenal (@90sArsenal) January 3, 2016

Luis Boa Morte

One of Arsene Wenger’s first signings at Arsenal, Boa Morte came through the academy at boyhood club Sporting Lisbon before moving to north London in 1997.

He scored two goals in 21 appearances in his debut season as Arsenal won the Premier League and FA Cup double in 1997-98. 

But the former Portugal winger never established himself as a first-team regular and was sold to Southampton for just £500,000 in 1999.

Rui Fonte

Having poached Boa Morte from Sporting’s academy in 1997,…