AS Roma's Kevin Strootman on Top of Manchester United Wish List

Manchester United are plotting a summer move for AS Roma star Kevin Strootman, according to the Daily Express.

The report claims that newly appointed Red Devils manager Louis Van Gaal has earmarked the Dutch midfielder as his top priority signing even though he will be out at least for the next four months with a knee injury. Van Gaal has already confirmed that Strootman is on the list of players he wants to sign during the upcoming transfer window.

However, United will be pursuing Strootman as their manager has got an approval to make a £25m bid even though Roma are keen on holding on to one of their prized assets. The 20-time English champions sought to acquire the 24-year-old's services last summer but the Italian capital club won the race to persuade him to leave Eredivisie side PSV Eindhoven.

The Old Trafford club are mourning the sudden demise of their owner Malcom Glazer. Despite the incident, Van Gaal will reportedly be given a £150m transfer kitty to bolster their fortunes in the upcoming campaign.

The former Barcelona and Bayern Munich boss is said to have blocked United's attempts in signing Cesc Fabregas from the Catalan club, amid reports suggesting that the Spanish international is keen on returning to the Premier League during the upcoming transfer window.

Van Gaal wants Strootman to be his stalwart at the heart of his starting XI at Old Trafford and it is believed that the player himself is keen to join forces with his national team manager.

The 62-year-old is hopeful that Roma's hierarchy will allow Strootman to leave Italy even though he still has four years remaining on his contract at Stadio Olimpico.

Another of United's reported target from the Serie A runners-up, Miralem Pjanic was declared 'not for sale' by Roma president, James Pallotta.

The former Lyon star committed his future to the club by signing a new contract last month and manager Rudi Garcia is insistent on retaining his best players for the future.

"This group is fantastic. We hope to keep almost all of them and improve the team. We have already started to build for the future," Sky Sports quoted Garcia as saying.

"Pjanic's renewal is a good sign for the club, because our main aim in the transfer market is to keep our players. Then we need to bring in players with experience. In some positions where we are a little short in terms of quantity, we need to weigh up our options."