Manchester United are reportedly on the verge of smashing the British transfer record as they close in on a reported £56 million (€70 million) deal to bring in Real Madrid's Angel Di Maria.
Earlier there were reports of Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal pulling the plug on the Di Maria deal, with him thought to be satisfied with his current attacking line-up consisting of Adnan Januzaj, Robin van Persie, Wayne Rooney and Juan Mata.
However, ESPN claim that the Reds Devils remain keen on landing the former Benfica man, who has been in top form at both club as well as the international level.
The Los Blancos have agreed to sell the Argentine though both sides are still yet to agree on the finer details, said report.
Also, the Red Devils have also reportedly offered Di Maria a very lucrative wage package. United are probably trying to tempt the Argentine with attractive wages as they will not be able to offer him European football this season.
Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti earlier confirmed that the 26-year-old has asked to leave the Bernabeu due to him unable to find a place in the starting line-up, following the arrivals of James Rodriguez and Toni Kroos from Monaco and Bayern Munich respectively.
"Di Maria has asked to leave and has rejected an offer by the club. It's up to the player to resolve this situation himself," Ancelotti had said earlier, according to Marca.
The former Chelsea boss added more fuel to the ongoing speculations about Di Maria by leaving him out during Real Madrid 0-1 loss to Atletico Madrid in the second leg of the Spanish Super Cup.
Meanwhile, van Gaal reportedly wants Di Maria to wear the iconic number 7 shirt when he completes his move to Old Trafford, according to the Daily Mail.
The number 7 jersey holds a lot of importance and value at Old Trafford, with some legendary players including George Best, Eric Cantona, David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo donning the shirt during their time at United.
And now van Gaal reportedly wants Di Maria to wear the legendary shirt and shoulder some additional responsibility when he arrives to Old Trafford.
The Argentine will be United's fourth major signing this summer following the arrivals of Ander Herrera, Luke Shaw and Marcos Rojo from Athletic Bilbao, Southampton and Sporting Lisbon respectively.
