Manchester United are planning a £25 million bid to sign Luka Modric from Real Madrid after coming to the reluctant realisation that they are unlikely to secure any of their primary transfer targets.

United began the summer with genuine aspirations of marking the start of the David Moyes era at Old Trafford with a stellar signing such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale or Cesc Fàbregas, but despite making several inquiries the club have been frustrated on all three fronts and forced to look elsewhere.United retain an interest in Fàbregas, but, having had two bids rejected by Barcelona, they have accepted that they are unlikely to complete the deal, while they have received so little encouragement in their pursuit of Ronaldo and Bale that they have stopped short of making formal offers.

As a result the club’s plans have altered, with Modric now viewed as a leading target as Moyes seeks a player capable of adding some creativity and sparkle to United’s midfield.The Croatia midfielder is seen as an important squad player at the Bernabéu, but was unable to establish himself as a first-team regular last season after his £33 million move from Tottenham Hotspur. United are hopeful that Real will be willing to negotiate as they look to fund their world-record move for Bale.Modric has been under consideration by United at various times in the past few years, but they never came close to completing a deal because of the difficulty of negotiating with Tottenham and certain reservations about his qualities.While his ability is not in question, United’s scouts have raised concerns about

Modric’s modest goalscoring record and tendency to underperform in the biggest matches. The 27-year-old proved a point to his detractors at Old Trafford in the most emphatic manner possible last season, however, by coming off the bench to score a spectacular equaliser for Real in their Champions League second-round tie against United after the home side had been reduced to ten men.

http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/public/sport//article3829086.ece

What do you guys think? Would Madrid be willing to sell him?

Nope. We JUST bought him. And he was outstanding towards the end of the season too, when he started to settle in. I think Ancelotti would be intelligent to keep him and use him more often.

And WHY is Moyes ALWAYS going for the players he won't be able to get? First Bale, then Fabregas, and now Modric? They should've signed Thiago before they start to regret it.

Forget Modric! Give little Januzaj a shot.

We need to concentrate on building defense! No clean sheet at all!

Why would Madrid sell him for 10m less than they bought him for only 12 months ago?

Modric, Ozil and Isco... Real Madrid will destroy two of them... Which ones ?

@Dynastian

"They should've signed Thiago before they start to regret it."

That made no sense :P

@tdot

I meant that they had a chance to sign Thiago for 22 M pounds, which as Raimondo put it, is an immense bargain on his bags of potential. Thiago may as well end up being one of the best midfielders in the world in the coming 6-7 years, and United will regret missing out the opportunity to sign one of the most promising talents in WF.

I mean, they're trying to go for Fabregas now, who I'm pretty sure is still loyal to Barcelona and Arsenal, and now Modric, who they expect Madrid to sell after 1 year of service and for less than 10 million for what we bought him for. I mean, if they really wanted a playmaker that bad, Thiago was THE man for the job. :/

Fabregas hasn't really come out to repudiate those offers made by United. This either means one of two things: 1) Either he wants to leave (unlikely) or 2) He wants to force Barca to understand that he is a class player who the best teams in the world want, and therefore he should be getting more playing time in his preferred position. I don't much involve myself with conspiracy theories, but I think United can't really be gullible enough to think they can sign these players. I think they are trying to make Rooney stay by going for players that are a direct threat to his position. @Dynastian98, we don't need Thiago(that's why we were never in for him). We need Fellaini.

@TheGame

Either way, you DO need a midfielder, and if Moyes fails to get Fellaini as well (which might be unlikely, since Moyes is his previous manager and can tempt him to United) it'll be bad.

goodluck with that Moyes i doubt RMA will sell him after 1 year