Angel di Maria

Manchester United are set to launch a record €60m (£47m) bid to secure the services of Real Madrid star Angel Di Maria, reports in Spain claim.

Having already signed midfielder Ander Herrera and left-back Luke Shaw, Louis van Gaal 'has specifically requested', according to AS, the signing of a winger to fit in his 4-3-3 formation.

And the Spanish newspaper reports that the Premier League giants official are ready to make a €60m bid to meet Van Gaal's demands – the same amount that Real Madrid paid Barcelona for Luis Figo to Barcelona - the record amount recouped for a player in La Liga.

Nevertheless, AS claims that United will have to fight with Paris Saint Germain for Di Maria, with the Ligue 1 big spenders also set to match that offer.

Arsenal, Manchester City and Monaco are also monitoring the situation but AS believe they are out of the race as they are not likely to reach that figure.

Real manager Carlo Ancelotti considers Di Maria a crucial player in his squad but AS claims club officials will allow him to leave for a record fee.

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"I still don't know if I'll stay at Real Madrid. I'm happy, but we'll see what happens," Di Maria recently admitted.

Furthermore, Los Blancos have already earmarked World Cup sensation James Rodriguez as his replacement – with super agent Jorge Mendes behind the negotiations.

Meanwhile, Di Maria faces a race against time to recover from injury in time the World Cup final, should Argentina overcome Netherlands this week.

Di Maria has been ruled out of the last four clash on Wednesday after tearing his right thigh muscle during the first half of Argenina's quarter-final victory over Belgium but he is undergoing 'special' stem cell treatment in order to be fit for the final on Sunday.