David de Gea saga hots up as Manchester United now 'willing to negotiate' Real Madrid move

Jorge Mendes has reportedly told Real Madrid that Manchester United are willing to negotiate the departure of David de Gea ahead of the coming summer transfer window. Spanish radio station Onda Cero says that Jose Mourinho is ready to part ways with his Number One but the deal won't be as strain forward due to the Spaniard's high salary.

De Gea, 26, was already on the verge of joining Real Madrid in the summer of 2015 in a deal that would have seen Keylor Navas make the move in the opposite direction as a makeweight.

But both transfers collapsed on deadline day after paperwork failed to arrive at La Liga headquarters on time.

The Spanish international decided days later to commit his long-term future to Old Trafford by putting pen to paper on a new deal until 2019.

Navas thus continued at the Santiago Bernabeu and played a key role in Real Madrid's run to the Champions League crown.

However, the Costa Rica international has failed to replicate the same level during the current campaign, with fans and pundits even asking Zinedine Zidane to replacing him with current second keeper Kiko Casilla instead.

Reports in Spain have thus claimed that Real Madrid are ready to sort it out the situation in the summer by making a new approach to make de Gea their number one ahead of the 2017-2018 campaign.

Onda Cero show El Transistor has now given Real Madrid crucial hope in securing that deal after reporting that Super agent Mendes has told Los Blancos that United manager Mourinho has given the green light to negotiate the sale of his client.

Real Madrid are thus expected to open talks with United to complete a move but El Transistor suggests that de Gea will need to cut his salary if he wants to move to the Bernabeu.

The Spanish radio show says that de Gea is currently earning around €12m (£10.2m, £13m) a-year at United – equivalent to £196,000 a week – and Real Madrid wouldn't match that figure as only the major stars at the Bernabeu earn that much.

El Transistor, nevertheless, points out that this salary issues already prevented Real Madrid from signing Paul Pogba during the last summer transfer window as Los Blancos' offer to the Frenchman was far behind United's one.