Ezequiel Garay would have joined United this summer if it wasn’t for Moyes’ arrival…
Benfica’s Argentinian centre-half Ezequiel Garay had all but agreed a move to Manchester United in the summer, but David Moyes refused to sanction a deal for the £18m asking price, reports the Daily Mail.
Garay has impressed in Portugal since arriving from Real Madrid two seasons ago, and Sir Alex Ferguson rated the 27-year-old very highly. Garay is very comfortable on the ball, and has the ability to step out of defence and start attacks with his strong technical ability and good array of passing.
“I believed I was going to join Manchester United in the summer. The deal was nearly closed but finally Benfica did not accept the offer,” said the impressive stopper, who is now being lined up by Barcelona as a long-term Carles Puyol replacement.
“I believe the exit of Ferguson has influenced the deal. Moyes did not believe in me as much but that’s not a problem.
“I am happy at Benfica and have a lot of dreams and ambitions for this season. Now I only think about the present which is Benfica but it’s never possible to discard anything in the future.”
Moyes was heavily criticised in the summer for not sealing potential transfer targets, and only managed to bring in £27m midfield battler Marouane Fellaini on deadline day. He missed out on the likes of Cesc Fabregas, Thiago and Ander Herrera, but clearly felt a deal for Garay wasn’t a necessity.
With Rio Ferdinand ageing, and Nemanja Vidic repeatedly linked with a move to Juventus, it may well have been unwise for Moyes to cancel a deal for Garay, and only time will tell if the likes of Chris Smalling and Phil Jones are already capable of doing a similar job to the Argentine.
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