Nicolás Gaitán

An Argentine footballer Osvaldo Nicolás Fabián Gaitán currently serves for Benfica, where he plays as an attacking midfielder. He was born on 23 February 1988 in San Martín, Buenos Aires.

Nicolás was the product of the youth system of Boca Juniors. At the academy he studied football in its minutest details. He performed for the junior team and took part in the youth championships. Being a trainee of the club he was said to have a promising future in football. His good performance and diligence earned him a promotion to the senior level.

In 2008, Nicolás signed his first pro contract with Boca Juniors. Despite the absence of playing experience at the professional level, he got the opportunity to perform in few matches as a starter. That turned to be enough for Gaitán to become the head coach’s first choice. He remained his place in the starting line-up for the next two seasons. Sometimes, the halfback performed as a sub or was even out of game due to his bad physical condition. In total, he made 66 matches and scored 12 goals for the club.

In 2010, Nicolás was noticed by the scouts from Benfica. Very soon he got an offer to move to the Portuguese side. That was not the only offer, the services of the talented footballer were desired to be secured by various clubs, but he preferred to join the Portuguese giants. In the summer 2010, the clubs agreed on a fee of €8.4 million. From the very start of his life at a new club he began to make frequent appearances in the team’s fixtures, turning into one of the squad’s anchor players. He has already featured in more than 60 matches and keeps on performing for the first team.

Since 2009, Nicolás has been invited 6 times to represent Argentina at the international level.