There are many promising players that get touted as the next best thing and at 16 years of age Damian Manso was going to be the second coming of Maradona. I was fortunate to have seen one of Manso’s first games with Newell’s Old Boys and throughout the years kept tabs on the upstart Argentine.
Unfortunately a string of injuries marginalized Manso and kept him away from the spotlight. The crafty midfielder even had two failed stints in Europe with French outfit Bastia and the Greek club Xanthi; with each failed run leading him back to Newells. I had all but forgotten about Manso until watching the 2008 FIFA club’s World Cup semi-final’s match between Pachuca and LDU Quito.
It was there that I learned that Manso had been a key figure in Quito’s Copa Libertadores conquest. At 30 years of age Manso was finally fulfilling half of his projected potential. Manso’s participation in the club’s WC earned him the bronze ball and a contract with Pachuca.
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