The Argentinian goalkeeper of OGC Nice has the best save percentage (80.39% before the start of the 29th day of Ligue 1), the most clean sheets (12) and therefore the number of goals saved (11, 35).
Walter Benitez, who obtained dual nationality last December, could well arrive in the cages of the Blues.
Last bastion of the best defense in Ligue 1, Walter Benitez has saved the Aiglons more than once this season.
Especially in Strasbourg, at the end of February.
And his statistics speak for him: the Argentinian doorman of OGC Nice, 29, has the best save percentage (80.39% before the start of the 29th day and the shock in Marseille this Sunday evening), the most of clean sheets (12) and therefore the number of goals saved (11.35).
And not only in the national competition.
This last indicator, which measures the differential between the number of goals conceded and the goals expected, on target and conceded, also places him at the top of the best goalkeepers among the five major European championships, according to the LFP.
So it's not nothing.
So much so that some are already promising other horizons… tricolor to Walter Benitez, transferred from the Quilmes AC club, in the province of Buenos Aires, to the Gym in 2016.
"There are not 50 of the good goalkeepers in our league"
Never selected in the Argentine team, "without knowing why" as he explained to So Foot in February 2021, the goalkeeper from the Riviera capital, who obtained dual nationality last December, could well arrive in the cages of the Blues .
Alongside another Nice, Hugo Lloris.
In any case, this is the option that many are talking about at the moment.
“Didier [Deschamps] has necessarily already thought about it.
There are not 50 good goalkeepers in our championship, ”says Pascal Olmeta, interviewed by
20 Minutes
.
For the Bastiais, former Olympique de Marseille, the imposing Benitez and his meter 91 “is serene while having temperament” and he is “very strong morally”.
“Even if he still took a little time to show all his talent, it's a very nice surprise.
Even if, sometimes, at the foot, it is not always an all-risk insurance, it improves season after season.
It's really a nugget, a very good find”, also confirms Roger Ricort.
According to the former Aiglon, who is full of praise, "the quality of Nice's defense, Walter Benitez has a lot to do with it", "he is really at the level of all the best French goalkeepers".
Could Benitez claim to be bigger than the Gym?
And his future in Nice then?
With such results, could the Riviera porter for six seasons claim to be bigger than the current second in the French Premier League championship?
For Pascal Olmeta, OGC Nice “should try to keep him at all costs”.
“Coach Christophe Galtier placed a lot of hope in him and today he is a pillar of the team”, further analyzes the Corsican.
“Le Gym is at least lucky to also have a very good second goalkeeper who has proven himself in the Coupe de France [Marcin Bulka].
There is plenty to choose from, points out Roger Ricort.
So if a big club arrives in Benitez, and everyone gets something out of it, it would be logical for them to go to an even bigger structure.
The Argentinian is engaged with OGC Nice until 2023.
Sport
63,000 supporters expected for the OM-OGC Nice clash, but without Gym supporters
Sport
Boss of the best defense in Ligue 1, Dante extends with OGC Nice
Soccer
Ligue 1 Uber Eats
Sport
0 comment
0 share
Share on Messenger
Share on Facebook
Share on Twitter
Share on Flipboard
Share on Pinterest
Share on Linkedin
Send by Mail
To safeguard
A fault ?
To print