Red Devils boss eyes Croatian playmaker.New Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal could look to make Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric his first signing for the club after growing increasingly frustrated in his attempts to sign Toni Kroos, CaughtOffside understands.
The Croatian international, formerly of Tottenham Hotspur, has been linked with United in the past, during his days at White Hart Lane and during his last summer’s transfer window, and he is high on their agenda again this year.
The Red Devils are in desperate need of quality in the middle of the park after the retirement of Paul Scholes last year left them short of creativity in that area, and Modric is one of a number of players to be linked with the club since then.
Bayern Munich playmaker Kroos was believed to be van Gaal’s priority target to come in in that position, while Juventus’ Arturo Vidal has also been mentioned as a possible candidate, however a lack of progress on a deal to lure Kroos away from the Allianz Arena has seemingly led the Dutch coach to look elsewhere.
With Kroos and Vidal also reported to be targets for Madrid, it could be that the Spanish giants will be ready to consider offers for Modric this summer as they look to rebuild their squad ahead of next season.
Despite winning a double of the Champions League and the Copa del Rey, Real will be disappointed at the manner in which they fell away in the title race in La Liga, dropping points against poor opposition at the crucial time, allowing local rivals Atletico Madrid to finish as champions despite also ending the campaign in poor form themselves.
Although Modric was one of Real’s best players this term, United may now sense an opportunity to lure him to Old Trafford if the likes of Kroos and Vidal make their way to the Bernabeu, as there will surely be too much competition for places in the club’s midfield.
The sale of the former Tottenham man will surely not go down too well with the club’s fans after his fine form this season, but Real have also let key, under-rated players such as Claude Makelele and Mesut Ozil leave against the wishes of their supporters in the past.
Real have also shown a recent interest in United wonderkid Adnan Januzaj, so a deal for Modric may not be the only transfer business between these two European giants this summer.
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