Real Madrid exit looming for Garay

Posted Friday, July 08, 2011 by ESPN

Real Madrid's out-of-favour defender Ezequiel Garay is extremely close to a move to Benfica, according to the player's agent.

Garay, who moved to Real in 2009 having agreed a move the year before, has struggled to establish himself at the Santiago Bernabeu, and has featured sporadically this season under coach Jose Mourinho, making just eight appearances in all competition.

The Argentinean defender was initially reported to be a makeweight in the deal involving Benfica left-back Fabio Coentrao. However, that has been made unnecessary due to Real agreeing the meet the €30million buyout clause in Coentrao's contract.

However, Garay is still heavily linked with a move to Benfica, and while many media outlets report a deal has been done, there is no official word yet from either club.
Nonetheless, Garay's agent Ricardo Schlieper reveals that a move is almost as good as done.

"He [Garay] will play for Benfica," Schlieper told Maisfutebol. "Everything has been settled.

"He signed a contract on Wednesday. I was in Madrid and he received the paperwork in Santa Fe, where he was with the national team.

"It is a four-year contract."
Schlieper further revealed that Garay was looking forward to playing in the Portuguese Liga, and was confident of his prospects at succeeding there.

"He has always been interested [in moving to Benfica].

"They are a great club and play in an attractive league, with a lot of Argentines, which makes it all the more comfortable, and he will play on a regular basis which is what he was missing."

Spanish sources suggest that Real will receive around €5.5m in return for Garay's services.