Manchester United are ready to go all out on transfer deadline day to sign a central defender, with Marquinhos the latest "most likely" candidate.
While reports continue to suggest Mats Hummels will move to Old Trafford from Borussia Dortmund next summer, Louis Van Gaal is keen to strengthen his backline before the transfer window shuts on Monday, with Paris Saint-Germain's Marquinhos the main target.
Manchester United are ready to bid £35 million, according to the Sun, and hope that will be enough to persuade the player and, more importantly, the club to sell on transfer deadline day.
The report claims PSG have quoted Manchester United a ridiculously high fee of £112 million, which, of course, is just to force all interested clubs to look elsewhere.
However, with Marquinhos still far from a certain first-choice in his central defensive position, Manchester United might hold hope that the player can force through a move in the next few hours.
Manchester United have also been heavily linked with a transfer for Aleksandar Dragovic on deadline day, and considering the Austria international is available for a fraction of the money that they will have to pay for Marquinhos, this deal does look more likely.
There is no doubt that Marquinhos is a big talent, but signing Dragovic from Dynamo Kyiv for under £15 million makes more sense than shelling out big bucks for the Brazilian, especially since Hummels is likely to cost United a considerable sum in the summer.
All this could be a moot point, though, if Van Gaal's words are to be believed. The Manchester United manager, last week, insisted he does not plan on signing anyone during the January transfer window, even if reports continue to suggest United could be one of the busier teams on deadline day.
"I don't think it's favourable for the league because it's a little bit unfair," said Van Gaal when asked about signings in January. "You start a league and then you change your team -- the richer clubs can do that and it's not fair for other clubs.
"But that's the rule and you can take benefit of it. We are doing nothing -- that I have already said 00 but I read every day that I or Manchester United are interested in other players.
"We only have Victor Valdes [as a signing in January]. We gave him a chance. We are only selling players, not buying them."
