There are still seventeen days left in the winter transfer window, and Benfica is trying to make them count by adding one Real Madrid player to their roster.
Coach Bruno Lage's team has seen one of their strikers leave the club during the winter, as Raúl de Tomás went back to La Liga to play for Espanyol. With that in mind, the Portuguese tactician has urged his bosses to hire a replacement, and they have set their sights on Real Madrid's Mariano Díaz.
Díaz has practically gone blank all season with Real Madrid, enjoying his first minutes of playing time during last week's Spanish Super Cup. He has failed to find the back of the net this season, and he only managed to score four goals last season. Nevertheless, the Portuguese side feels that he could be the man to fill the void left by De Tomás.
According to O Jogo, Benfica is set to propose Real Madrid a loan deal for the rest of the season, with an obligatory buyout clause set to be executed next summer. The main problem for this deal to take place is that Mariano is not willing to leave the club despite his lack of minutes, which may force Benfica to up the ante if they really want to sign the footballler.
Benfica is the current league leader in the Portuguese top-flight, and they want to keep their four-point lead over Porto intact for the rest of the season. Only time will tell if the Spanish striker wants to leave his boyhood club to play in another league.
