Manchester United scouts were present at Benfica’s latest game as the Red Devils have their eye on a couple of top prospects, according to reports.
With Sir Jim Ratcliffe keen to rebuild the Man Utd squad in the summer, the club looks set for a busy summer transfer window with plenty of ins and outs.
Given the long-term future of Casemiro and Christian Eriksen is up in the air, the club is keen to strengthen this department in the summer with a younger alternative.
Likewise, they are also looking at signing a new centre-half as Raphael Varane is currently set to depart at the end of the season, given his contract is up.
With those positions in mind, Man Utd have turned their attention to a Benfica duo. According to Portuguese outlet Record, Man Utd scouts were in attendance at Benfica’s latest game.
The first player they were watching was Joao Neves, who has garnered plenty of hype throughout the season so far.
At just 19 years old, the holding midfielder has already racked up 67 appearances for Benfica and he’s been attracting interest from all over Europe.
Along with Man Utd, the likes of Chelsea and Liverpool have been linked with the midfielder. Neves is under contract with Benfica until 2028, but his deal does include a mammoth €120m (£102.7m) release clause.
Another Benfica star on Man Utd’s radar
Neves would be a superb addition to the Man Utd squad, although he’s not the only Benfica player who’s currently being tracked by the Red Devils.
According to the same report, scouts were also keeping tabs on Antonio Silva. The 20-year-old centre-half has been a target for Man Utd for some time and the club is clearly doing their homework on the player.
Silva is under contract until 2027 and he has a release clause within his deal which is worth a reported €100m (£85.7m).
Reports from earlier this year claimed that United have made contact with the agency Gestifute over a deal for Silva.
While his release clause stands at 100m, the Red Devils believe they could swing a deal for around €50m (£42.8m). However, it remains to be seen if Benfica would be willing to accept an offer for Silva which is half of his release clause.
The defender certainly has a bright future ahead of him and along with being linked with Man Utd, he’s also drawn attention from Arsenal, Chelsea and Real Madrid according to TEAMtalk sources.
If Man Utd do decide to trigger the release clauses of both Silva and Neves, they would end up paying a whopping €220m, so it stands to reason they’d try and negotiate down the prices for both players.