It was the summer of 2003 when a tall and somewhat unknown Brazilian central defender arrived at the Estadio da Luz, ready to begin his European Football career. Having played 62 matches for Cruzeiro, Luisao was considered to be a hot prospect, and Benfica just so happened to be the side that took a chance on him.
Since his arrival in Lisbon, the Brazilian international endured some tough times early on at the club. He was under performing and he really struggled to find consistency and confidence in his game. It had come to a point that he was on the verge of heading back to Brazil to play with more regularity, in an attempt to find his confidence once again.
Uncertainty and frustration dominated his thought process early on, but looking back on the past 10 years, Luisao has rightfully earned himself a spot on the list of Benfica legends.
Having featured in well over 200 matches for the club, Luisao will make his way out the big door, if a transfer does happen.
His pace and aerial ability were without a doubt a very big question mark. Fans could not believe how such a tall player struggled to win aerial battles, but with time, Luisao managed to impose his style of play within the squad. Lack of pace also had fans questioning his transfer, but his ability to read the game allowed him to get in the right position more often than not.
Leadership and professionalism are just two of the many things he offers the club, but losing Luisao could end up being beneficial in a way.
According to multiple reports, Benfica's Ezequiel Garay has been a key target for Manchester United, with Nemanja Vidic raising some questions in regards to his fitness. But, looking at the big picture, one would have to believe that if Benfica sold Luisao, that would at least give them the ability to keep Garay for at least one more season.
Doing without Luisao would obviously require Benfica to find another permanent replacement for him, with either Steven Vitoria, Mitrovic, Jardel or even Lisandro Lopez ready to jump at the opportunity. After some summer shopping, Jorge Jesus has the players to fill that void if Luisao was to leave, but they would also need someone to step up from a leadership standpoint.
One thing Benfica fans would not enjoy is to see Luisao leave, only to have Garay follow shortly after with Manchester United seemingly interested.
If one of them has to leave, it would probably be better that it be Luisao, as he has expressed his desire a few times in his 10 year tenure of taking on another adventure. At the age of 32, if Benfica could get a significant amount of money for him, they should take the opportunity, and possibly use that money to purchase the rest of Garay's contractual rights from Real Madrid.
