- The left-back scored the only goal in a 1-0 victory over Flamengo in the second leg of the 2025 quarter-finals, but had his penalty saved by Agustín Rossi in the shootout that eliminated 'El Pincha'.
- Having started nine of Estudiantes' 12 matches in the 2026 CONMEBOL Libertadores, he heads to Montevideo for his first international final.
Some nights stay with a footballer for a long time. For Gastón Benedetti, 25 September 2025 at Estadio UNO was one of them: a night that brought one of the finest performances of his career, but also the penalty shootout that ended 'El Pincha's' campaign. Thirteen months later, Estudiantes de La Plata knocked Flamengo out on penalties and will contest the CONMEBOL Libertadores Final at the Estadio Centenario. The 25-year-old left-back has settled that unfinished business against 'Mengão', but his ambitions go further, with the continent's most coveted trophy now firmly in his sights.
25 September 2025
Estudiantes had topped Group A in that year's competition, finishing ahead of defending champions Botafogo, before eliminating Cerro Porteño in Asunción thanks to a Santiago Ascacíbar penalty eight minutes into second-half stoppage time. Their quarter-final tie against Flamengo began with a 2-1 defeat at the Maracanã, with Guido Carrillo's goal giving the Argentine side hope heading into the return leg. In La Plata, with the final action of the first half, Benedetti collected a long pass from Santiago Núñez and unleashed a powerful left-footed strike from outside the box that slipped through Agustín Rossi's grasp: 1-0 on the night and the tie level on aggregate. He found the net again in the second half, but his effort was ruled out for offside. In the penalty shootout, Rossi saved Estudiantes' second attempt, taken by Benedetti, before also denying Ascacíbar. Flamengo prevailed 4-2 and went on to lift the trophy.
2026, a second chance
Estudiantes returned to the CONMEBOL Libertadores as champions of Argentina's Torneo Clausura, with Benedetti once again a regular starter, featuring in the starting line-up in nine of their 12 matches. Their campaign brought a reunion with Flamengo in Group A, which saw a 1-1 draw in La Plata and a 1-0 defeat at the Maracanã. Qualification was only secured on the final matchday, courtesy of Mikel Amondarain's goal against Independiente Medellín. Next came a 3-0 victory over Universidad Católica in Santiago, following a 1-1 draw in the first leg, and a quarter-final tie against Corinthians. A suspension for accumulated yellow cards ruled Benedetti out of the return leg in São Paulo, the night Alexis Castro found the net. In the semi-finals, Flamengo awaited once again. Benedetti started the goalless draw in La Plata before watching Fernando Muslera's memorable night at the Maracanã from the bench, with Marcos Rojo occupying the left-sided centre-back position. This time, the penalty shootout belonged to 'El Pincha': a 3-2 victory, with José Sosa, Eros Mancuso and Tiago Palacios all converting their spot-kicks.
'Vasquito's' journey
Born on 29 March 2001 in Argentina's Entre Ríos province, Benedetti came through the youth ranks at Estudiantes before gaining valuable first-team experience on loan at Guillermo Brown de Puerto Madryn in the 2022 Primera Nacional. He made his top-flight debut against Newell's Old Boys on 31 March 2023. Six days later, he made his first international appearance against Oriente Petrolero in the CONMEBOL Sudamericana, finishing the match on the left side of midfield. "When I was a kid, I played in midfield. I had to read the game, try to position myself well on the pitch and, luckily, I didn't find it too difficult," he explained at the time, before summing up what that week meant to him: "It was always my dream to play for Estudiantes." Since then, he has won four trophies with 'El Pincha': the 2023 Copa Argentina, the 2024 and 2025 Trofeo de Campeones titles, and the 2025 Torneo Clausura. The showdown on 28 November will be his eighth final with the club and his first on the continental stage.
28 November 2026
Palmeiras, in a one-off showdown at 17:00 local time in Uruguay, at the Estadio Centenario: the venue where Estudiantes claimed their first title in 1968, and the stage on which 'El Pincha' could secure a fifth 'Gloria Eterna'. Alexander Medina will decide whether Benedetti returns to the starting line-up after a semi-final campaign in which he alternated between starting and coming off the bench. What is beyond doubt is the history he carries into the match: the goal that brought Estudiantes within touching distance of a remarkable achievement a year ago, and a penalty shootout that, should the Final go to spot-kicks, could offer him the chance for redemption that the CONMEBOL Libertadores still owes him.
