Portugal newspaper O Jogo today is saying that Benfica is ready to sell Serbian midfielder Nemanja Matic and are busy looking for a replacement.
This is a sure signal to Manchester United and other clubs that the 25-year-old Serbian international is available for the right price during the January window.
Manchester United manager David Moyes has said over the past couple of days that he would probably not be making any buys in January as the right players were just not available, and with Benfica now putting Matic in the shop window it will put the United manager under more pressure to make a signing.
The only reason Benfica is willing to sell Matic is because they need the money, and the sale of one of their best players would keep them worry free for a while. A Jogo is claiming that Matic has a buyout clause of 50€ million which could be a bit steep for the Portuguese player of the year, but a more realistic valuation of £35 million would be enough for Benfica to let him leave.
An ideal solution for Manchester United would be to do a deal that saw Anderson returning to Portugal even though the former Porto player has said on more than one occasion that he would never play for Porto rival Benfica.
United will not be the only team to show an interest in Matic but it does question David Moyes comments that the type of players he wants to sign are not available.
