Gai-tonne of interest

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As the 2012-13 season nears its end, European giants are busy firing managers and scouting players for the next. As has been the case for some years now, this transfer window too will be dominated by talks of potential moves by the Bales, and the Neymars.

But one player who seems to be making quite an impression on many and still somehow is not featured much in the transfer rumours is Benfica’s Argentine star Nicolas Gaitan.
Gaitan has been raising the bar for the Portuguese giants since 2010, when he moved from Argentine club Boca Juniors to the Lisbon-based side. His technical prowess and ability to beat the opponents with his pace and excellent ball-control has made many clubs struggle. He first came into the limelight in 2011-12 Champions League. Gaitan gave Manchester United enough to ponder with his pace and skill that Sir Alex Ferguson was then reportedly planning a multi-million swoop for the playmaker. However, Gaitan kept his cool and instead of adding fuel to the increasing interest from many clubs, the Argentine extended his deal at Benfica.
This season, Gaitan once again proved his ability to carry a team forward as he guided Benfica to the final of the Europa League and putting them still in contention of the domestic league title — where they are in a last-gasp battle with FC Porto.
Chelsea may reflect on a successful outing at the Amsterdam ArenA in the final, but even the hard-core Blues fans will agree that Gaitan was more than handy for Chelsea full-backs. The Argentine constantly outpaced and outsmarted Chelsea defenders to deliver laser-guided crosses to the box. If not Benfica’s profligacy up front, headline writers would have been singing praises of the Argentine. In fact Chelsea fans had their hearts in their mouths, when one such superbly directed cross was headed in by Benfica forward Oscar Cordozo, only to be flagged off-side by the linesman.
But it seems Gaitan won’t have to be worried about his crosses being wasted for long. United, City, Real Madrid are all once again in the hunt for the playmaker. Surely, with players like Robin van Persie or Sergio Aguero waiting in the box, Gaitan can look forward to a fruitful future.