Manchester United vs Benfica: Breathtaking Moments (PHOTOS)

It was a day of delight for the Benfica fans and Coach Jorge Jesus as they heldManchester United to a 2-2 draw in the Champions League Group C matches on Tuesday.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s team now needs a draw in Basel to qualify for the knockout stages.

Manchester United had its worst start when defender Phil Jones turned Nicolas Gaitan’s left-foot cross into his own net in the third minute. A series of defensive blunders followed.

Benfica is now on top of the group with nine points. Though Dimitar Berbatov and Darren Fletcher could lead Manchester United ahead to a better position, Benfica’s Pablo Aimar and Oscar Cardozo were at their best to stop any attempt of Manchester United to score the game.

Berbatov and Fletcher scored the two goals for Manchester United, while Jones and Aimar scored for Benfica.

The teams are as follows:
Manchester United: De Gea, Fabio, Jones, Ferdinand, Evra; Fletcher, Carrick; Valencia, Young, Nani, Berbatov.
Substitutes: Lindegaard, Giggs, Smalling, Park, Hernandez, R. Da Silva, Gibson.
Benfica: Artur Moraes, Maxi Pereira, Luisao, Garay, Emerson, Witsel, Javi Garcia, Bruno Cesar, Aimar, Rodrigo Moreno, Gaitan.
Substitutes: Eduardo, Amorim, Cardozo, Nolito, Nelson Oliveira, Matic,
Miguel Vitor.

Tottenham’s Luka Modric is ‘In a League of His Own’

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Luka Modric is the finest player of his type in the Premier League and Spurs are reaping the benefit of rejecting the advances of Chelsea and Manchester United in the summer, according to Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp.

Modric looked on the cusp of leaving Tottenham following a spate of lucrative bids from Chelsea, and reported interest from Sir Alex Ferguson but the north London club’s chairman Daniel Levy maintained an admirable defiance and Spurs have barely looked back since.

The diminutive Croatian was instrumental against Aston Villa on Monday, as he has been all season, and Jamie Redknapp, the son of Tottenham Hotspur boss Harry, believes the pint-sized playmaker is the finest creative midfielder in the entire division and patently worthy of the attentions of Andre Villas-Boas and Manchester United.

Chelsea and Manchester United have both been credited with reviving their mutual interests in Modric in January, but the aforementioned Sky Sports pundit believes the Tottenham Hotspur star is irreplaceable for Spurs, and “central to their run of form”.

“Luka Modric is in a league of his own as a central midfielder of his type in the Barclays Premier League right now.” Redknapp told

“Modric is central to their run of form. Yes, he has Scott Parker as his firefighter to cover and sit but Luka can play in a four because he’s not afraid to put in a shift.

“His hard work and his ball retention mean he does not get exposed to opponents breaking behind him, even though he is not a modern-day powerhouse.

“I really thought he would leave in the summer when Chelsea were making their move and he was clearly distracted.

“But Spurs – and especially the chairman, Daniel Levy – held strong. The chairman said he wouldn’t go and he didn’t. Levy stood up to Chelsea, held his ground and now Spurs are seeing the rewards.”

Tottenham are believed to be in talks with Modric in regards to a lucrative new contract which could make him the highest paid player in the club’s history, as they endeavour to thwart Chelsea and Manchester United.

Arsenal Transfer News: Gunners Set to Receive Bold £30M Bid from Barcelona for Theo Walcott

If rumors are to be believed, Spanish champions Barcelona have added English club Arsenal’s winger Theo Walcott to the list of players the club would like to bring to the Nou Camp. The European champions will, therefore, submit a bid to acquire the 22-year-old Englishman’s services.

Barcelona, who previously targeted Tottenham’s midfielder Gareth Bale, has now declared that the club will be making a £30 million move for Walcott; a figure that may be hard for Arsenal to resist. It is believed that Barca boss Pep Guardiola is looking for young players to add to the squad, to play alongside those advancing through the club’s youth ranks.

The Englishman has less than 18 months to run on his current contract and that may prove an advantage to the Catalan club. In addition, Walcott, a former Southmapton player, may feel the urge to look for a future elsewhere if Arsenal yet again fail to win a trophy or even finish in the top four of the Premier League, come May.

The English club, however, will be understandably reluctant to let Walcott go. He is considered one of the key members in the current Gunners’ squad and the club’s manager, Arsene Wenger, has already lost two other key players, Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri, to Barcelona and Manchester City, respectively.

The Spanish champions’ rumored bid of £30m could be seen as a trifle high for someone who has yet to demonstrate excellence on the same scale as Barcelona. However, give that the club’s other new signing, Chilean Alexis Sanchez, for example, has also yet to truly prove his worth to the team and front-man David Villa is still to regain form and looks off the pace, a gamble on Walcott may be worth Barcelona’s while.

Arsenal are currently 12 points adrift of league leaders Manchester City and are in seventh position in the table.

Arsenal €50m Playmaker Target Eden Hazard Set to Leave Lille

Lille president Michel Seydoux has placed a €50 million price tag on Eden Hazard, with the club admitting that no player is irreplaceable as the playmaker considers his future.

Hazard has been the subject of a great deal of transfer interest over the past year, and while Lille have fought hard to hold on to their star, Seydoux is now open to the idea of a deal if the price is right.

Chelsea have recently shown interest in Hazard, along with Real Madrid, but Arsenalhave been connected to the 20 year old for the long term, though a price as high as €50 million doesn’t even come close to the record that Wenger has spent on a player in his 15 years at the club.

“There is a real chance that he will stay at Lille if we have a good season and he still sees challenges here,” Seydoux told RTL.

“If we don’t do well, it’s probable that he will leave the club after this season as there’s plenty of interest.

“Will €50 million be enough? Nobody is irreplaceable and there are solutions for that kind of money.”

Arsenal will no doubt be unable to afford such a top price, but if the club are willing to bargain, Wenger could be set to make the biggest marquee signing for years with the Gunners.

But Lille may not be so willing to let Hazard head to the northLondon side, with the club still reeling from losing out on Park Chu Young at the last minute to Arsenal in the summer.

Park had already agreed to a deal in France, according to Seydoux, before he made the move to London, and the president described Wenger’s conduct in the matter as not very ‘elegant’.

Meanwhile, Lille currently still have Joe Cole on loan from Liverpool, and Seydouz has hinted that he may decide to keep the 30-year-old on a permanent basis if a deal with the Reds can be agreed to.

“It is not a certainty that he will leave us again at the end his contract. If he has a certain good feeling with Lille and we can make him an interesting offer… This is something that we will look into,” he said.