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LONDON -- Juan Mata is edging closer to joining Manchester United from Chelsea as the Premier League champions try to strengthen their squad after a lacklustre first half of the season. In a sign that Matas Chelsea departure is nearing, a person familiar with the situation said the midfielder did not train with the first team on Wednesday. United said it is yet to make a formal bid for Mata, but another person with knowledge of the situation said the club is pursuing the Spaniard in the January transfer window. The people spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the transfer is not being discussed publicly. According to Britains Press Association, United has lodged a 40 million-pound ($66-million) bid through a third party. United and its manager, David Moyes, would not take questions on Mata in the post-match news conference after the teams League Cup semifinal defeat to Sunderland later Wednesday. The 25-year-old Mata, Chelseas player of the year for the last two seasons, has fallen out of favour since Jose Mourinho returned as manager in June. He has not played for the team since the Jan. 1 victory against Southampton. Chelsea pulled further away from United in the Premier League title race by beating Moyes side 3-1 on Sunday. While Chelsea is third, just two points from the summit, United is seventh, 14 points behind leader Arsenal. Moyes accepts there is a need to reinforce the squad, with Champions League qualification, by finishing in the top four, far from certain. "I fully understand that supporters are keen to see us freshen up the squad with new faces, but January is a difficult month in which to bring people in," Moyes said in Wednesdays program for the League Cup semifinal against Sunderland. "While we are actively scouting players all the time, a lot of the work we are doing now is preparation for the summer. "If we can do any business now then we will certainly try to do it, but I will not compromise the standards required for a player that can come into this club and help improve it." Selling Mata to United could indicate that Chelsea does not see the 20-time English champions as a major rival this season. United has lost four out of five games at the start of 2014, and was seeking to overturn a 2-1 deficit against Sunderland on Wednesday night to reach the League Cup final. "We all know that our club is undergoing changes at present, but I have a clear path in my mind and I know where we are going," Moyes said in Wednesdays program. Mata would not be eligible to play for United in the Champions League because he has played in the group stage for Chelsea. Walter Payton Womens Jersey .com) - Devin Booker scored 19 points and top-ranked Kentucky put on a defensive clinic in an 83-44 obliteration of UCLA in the CBS Sports Classic. David Montgomery Jersey . The Vancouver coach and an announced sellout crowd of 18,910 watched in dismay as the Canucks lost 7-4 to the New York Islanders on Monday night by squandering a 3-0 lead in the third period. http://www.chicagobearfootballauthentic.com/authentic-dick-butkus-bears-jersey/ . Erik Logan, president of the network, said Friday that the postponement was made after meetings with the St. Louis Rams. William Perry Bears Jersey . The Detroit Tigers star had microfracture surgery Friday to repair the medial and lateral meniscus in his left knee. "I dont want to say it was a surprise," team president and general manager Dave Dombrowski said. Akiem Hicks Youth Jersey . Lexie Lou earned a commanding 4 1/2-length win Sunday in the $500,000 Woodbine Oaks.Paris, France (SportsNetwork.com) - Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer were among the third-round winners Friday at the French Open. Neither advanced easily, though, as both needed four sets. Djokovic came away with a 6-3, 6-2, 6-7 (2-7), 6-4 victory over Croatias Marin Cilic and Federer earned a 7-5, 6-7 (7-9), 6-2, 6-4 triumph over Russian Dmitry Tursunov. The second-seeded Djokovic won his eighth straight match. He entered the years second Grand Slam after capturing the Italian Masters, which included a victory over Rafael Nadal in the final, and won each of his first two matches this week in straight sets. Cilic, it appeared, would meet the same fate after the first two sets, but he dominated the third-set tiebreaker. Djokovic then earned an early break for a 2-0 edge in the fourth before Cilic battled back with a break and evened the set at 4-4. Djokovic held again and Cilic was ahead in the next game before the Serb won the last three points, the final one coming on a Cilic double fault. "First two sets and beginning of the third I had some chances to break him and kind of get the job done in straight sets, but he started playing a little bit better," said Djokovic. "He played great, the end of the third, especially in the tiebreak. I complicated my own life there in the fourth. But generally it was a difficult match from different aspects." Djokovic improved to 9-0 all-time against Cilic and will next play French crowd favorite Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. The 13th seed cruised to a 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 win over Polands Jerzy Janowicz to reach the fourth round for the fifth time in the last six years. Tsonga was a semifinalist last year, losing to David Ferrer. Federer, meanwhile, also won his first two matches in straight sets this week before a test from Tursunov on Friday. The Moscow native fought off 17-of-21 break-point chances before finally falling. The third-round exit tied his best finish in 11 appearances at the French Open. The fourth-seeded Federer, the only French mens champion in the draw outsiide of eight-time winner Nadal, also beat Tursunov earlier this year in the third round at Indian Wells and advanced to a fourth-round meeting with Latvias Ernests Gulbis.dddddddddddd "Im pleased to be through," said Federer, the 2009 champion. "Like expected, it was not a straight-forward, easy match. I knew that Dmitry was going to try different things, play aggressive, serve well and then take big cuts at the ball. Thats kind of how it went." Gulbis, coming off a win last week at the French Open tune-up in Nice, eased past Czech veteran Radek Stepanek, 6-3, 6-2, 7-5, to reach the fourth round for the second time at Roland Garros. He made the quarterfinals in 2008 before falling to Djokovic. Sixth-seeded Tomas Berdych needed four sets to dispose of Spains Roberto Bautista Agut, claiming a 6-1, 6-2, 6-7 (4-7), 6-4 triumph to reach the fourth round for only the fourth time in 11 appearances at Roland Garros. The Czechs best finish was a run to the semifinals in 2010. American John Isner is next for Berdych. The 10th seed went more than three hours to complete a 7-6 (15-13), 7-6 (7-3), 6-7 (5-7), 7-5 victory over Spains Tommy Robredo. Isner had never beaten a Spaniard in a Grand Slam in five previous attempts and became the first American since Robby Ginepri in 2010 to reach the round of 16 in Paris. Eighth-seeded Milos Raonic outlasted Frenchman Gilles Simon in five sets, rallying for a 4-6, 6-3, 2-6, 6-2, 7-5 victory. Raonic became the first Canadian to reach the fourth round in the French capital and will next play the winner between Spains Marcel Granollers and Slovakias Martin Klizan. Darkness nearly stopped Raonic and did halt the Granollers-Klizan match after three sets. It will resume Saturday with Granollers holding a 6-7 (5-7), 6-2, 7-6 (7-4) advantage. Saturdays third-round action also includes the top-seeded Nadal against Argentinas Leonardo Mayer, the fifth-seeded Ferrer against Italys Andreas Seppi and seventh-seeded Andy Murray against Germanys Philipp Kohlschreiber. ' ' '