The 27-year-old Argentine, who knows Angel di María very well from the International team has been linked with Manchester United on numerous of occasions since 2012. Gaitan's representative Jose Irribaren has stated: "Everything is possible, there is a deal with Manchester United. The will of the player is that everything goes well." If the deal for Nicolas Gaitan goes through, he would become Manchester United's second signing of the summer after PSV Eindhoven winger Memphis Depay was announced last month.
A capable, exciting player
Gaitan has many abilities such as to play with both feet, control in tight spaces and produce a lot of skills. Gaitan joining United would seem like a weird transfer on the surface. Despite his abilities, Manchester United have already signed a winger, in Depay for a transfer fee of £25million pounds. Also, The Red Devils have already got plenty of squad depth in that position - with di María, Juan Mata and Ashley Young all able to play in this position. So if he does sign for the club, it would consequently mean he has to be prepared to fight for a place in the starting line-up which could prove to be difficult for him with fierce competition for places.
Di María had an average debut season in the Premier League, he started off well but picked up a few injuries in the season. Also, he had a big scare when his family's house was robbed earlier on in the campaign, it seemed like he lost his touch after this incident. The talented winger has been linked with a move to Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich and Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain this summer, so it could possibly mean that Gaitan may be in-fact replacing Di María, as unlikely as it seems.
Nicolas Gaitan has had an impressive season for Benfica this season, in the Portuguese League he has played 27 matches - netted four goals and notched up an impressive 15 assists. Gaitan's main position is on the left wing, but he can also play in other positions such as the opposite wing and in a more advanced attacking midfield role. Since his move from Boca Juniors, Gaitan has consistently recorded double figures in contributing to The Eagles in the league with goals and assists.
What could he bring to the table?
Gaitan can bring in many benefits to the style of Manchester United's play. For instance he can bring fluid football into Manchester United's game, Gaitan linking up with the likes of Angel Di María and Juan Mata in a possible 4-2-3-1 formation. Although he normally plays on the wide in the game, allowing him to play in the CAM role will let him play to the best of his abilities which include superb ball control and top notch through balls. One of the problems the club faced last year was very limited creativity and sending too many long balls up to Marouane Fellaini, which only paid off a couple of times.
One big weakness to Gaitan's game is him not tracking back, in Louis van Gaal's style of game he expects every player - regardless of their position - to cover their defensive duties well. This has been shown on many occasions with Juan Mata and Ashley Young working until the last second of the game, especially when the team lose the ball in the middle of the pitch. So if this part of his game does not improve, it'd be unlikely that van Gaal would start him - risking being hit on the counter attack with not enough players back defending for the team.
Gaitan currently has a contract with the Portuguese giants until the summer of 2018, and has a buy-out clause of €35million euros (£25m) which should not be a fee that would make any problems to Manchester United. A question does remain for Manchester United fans, would they be happy if Nicolas Gaitan signs for the club possibly as a replacement for Di María or in a supporting role?