Manchester United reportedly open talks to sign Mario Mandžukić

Manchester United are getting desperate. With another poor transfer window about to draw to a close, they’ve reportedly opened talks for an ageing, lumbering forward in the shape of Mario Mandžukić — according to a report from Sky Italy. The 33-year-old Juventus striker is seemingly surplus to requirements in Turin, and has netted only 21 goals over the last three seasons in Serie A. Admittedly, he’s spent some of that time playing out wide, but it’s still not a massively convincing record.

The good news — if there is any — is that the deal isn’t expected to cost United too much, at least in the way of a transfer fee. Football Italia claim that Juve’s asking price is €15 million, which is roughly £13.8m in real money. However, per Ed Woodward’s usual transfer blunderings, Mandžukić may well be able to successfully demand a massively long and overly costly wage, so let’s not count our chickens before they’ve hatched.

Oh, dio mio.