Barcelona and Real Madrid miss out on Argentine starlet after President confirms contract with European giant

Real Madrid and Barcelona have made a concerted effort to scour Latin America for the best talents, and attempt to bring them to Spain over the past few years, but one of Argentina’s most promising players is headed to across the border on the Iberian Peninsula.

Both of the Clasico duo were interested in Velez Sarsfield’s 17-year-old winger Gianluca Prestianni, who has been on the radar of European sides for over a year, as one of the youngest debutants in the Argentine Primera.

Yet as carried by Sport, Velez President Fabian Berlanga has confirmed that he is on his way to Portugal.

“There is an offer from Benfica and, of course, we are analysing it. We are not going to stop the sale of the player because we need the money.”

Prestianni will move to Benfica on the 31st of January at the earliest, when he turns 18.

“He cannot go until that date because you are a minor, but there is a pre-agreement. With the money obtained we have to cover some needs of the squad,” said Berlanga.

The offer from Benfica is believed to be worth €8m for 85% of his rights, which is beyond what either Real Madrid or Barcelona had reportedly been willing to pay.

Prestianni has made 39 appearances for Velez, scoring three times and assisting once. 16 of those appearances have been starts this season, and Prestianni will now have the chance to learn under Angel di Maria, who also made the leap from Argentina to Europe by moving to Benfica.

Barcelona are already moving onto the next Velez talent, with Alvaro Montoro attracting attention for his smooth control.