Argentine wonderkid Gianluca Prestianni to sign for Benfica for €8m in January 2024

Benfica have agreed a deal with Argentine side Velez Sarsfield to sign wonderkid Gianluca Prestianni in the January transfer window. The deal was verbally agreed in August and has now been fully confirmed, with the winter transfer window less than a month away. 

The 2006-born youngster will turn 18 at the end of January, which is when he will travel to Portugal to link up with the first team. The Eagles will pay a transfer fee worth €8 million up-front plus €2 million in add-ons, and have included a 15% sell-on clause. Considering the huge profits they sell their players for, Velez could be entitled to a significant amount as part of the clause in the near future. 

Gianluca Prestianni to sign for Benfica in January 2024 

The youngster has scored 3 goals in 39 senior appearances for Velez since his debut in January. Prestianni is hyped up to be one of the best young talents in the world, and could be a big player for the future if he can find his footing in Europe. 

Although he has represented the Argentina U-17 team six times, he didn’t participate at the U-17 World Cup held recently, with Argentina finishing fourth behind Mali. 

The youngster is quick and very skilled with the ball at his feet. As a result, he could be a huge threat out wide should he add an end product to his game. And with a nurturing environment like the one at Benfica, Gianluca Prestianni seems set to be the next big thing to come out of the Portuguese side.