Quote:Manchester United are set to go head-to-head with Real Madrid in the race to sign Valencia midfielder David Silva. Real have been widely expected to complete a £20m deal for Silva during the summer but now United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is ready to swoop in and sign the player from under the noses of the Spanish giants.

The 24-year-old is ready to follow David Villa and quit Valencia after his fellow Spanish international left for Barcelona last week. Silva has been linked with Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal and Barcelona in recent months, but it seems that Real and United are the front-runners for his signature.

Reports in Spain last week suggested Madrid had already contacted Valencia officials about Silva’s availablility and were close to secureing a deal, but now Fergie is set to make an approach and tempt the tricky winger to Old Trafford. Although Ferguson is a huge admirer of Silva, he will not pay over the odds in an over-inflated transfer market as he looks to add one special player to his squad.

Quote:Sir Alex Ferguson is reportedly weighing up a potential big money bid for Roma midfielder Daniele De Rossi this summer. The Manchester United boss will have seen that local rivals City have been strongly linked with the battling Italian and the Old Trafford manager knows that he could well do with a bit of steel in his midfield and may make a move for the 26 year old.

Having seen Owen Hargreaves return from injury but still not convinced the England international will have returned a different player to the one he invested a great deal of time and money chasing, Ferguson has been looking for players to play in the centre of his Man United midfield.

With Paul Scholes nearing the end of his glittering career, and with Anderson and Michael Carrick both coming off the back of very average campaigns, the club could do with a new addition and De Rossi is a top quality player who is in many ways two types of players in one.

Never afraid to put in a tackle, but fortunately more able to do so successfully than Scholes, the Rome born man is also able to steer his side towards goal and has the ability to score his fair share of crucial corkers. The valuation of the World Cup bound De Rossi could however be something of a problem. Roma are reportedly pricing their player at a rather inflated £38m which could well scare off any interest in the player, which may well be Claudio Ranieri’s intention.

Quote:Manchester United chance of signing Luis Suarez looked a little bright after they have been told the frontman would only consider leaving Ajax for Old Trafford. United boss Sir Alex Ferguson and his scouts have been tracking the Uruguay striker for some time and apparently is now ready to make his move for the 23-year-old who scored an impressive 35 goals in 33 league games this season.

The Daily Star reported that their club source said:

“Suarez is a player Ajax would really want to keep."

“He is an excellent talent and has scored a lot of goals for us this season."

“At the moment he is an Ajax player and we want to keep it that way."

“If an offer comes in for Suarez and it is a big offer, we would have to discuss it. He is a very ambitious player.”

Suarez joined Ajax from fellow Dutch side Groningen three years ago and his amazing goalscoring record has alerted a string of European clubs. Ajax manager Martin Jol wants his scoring machine to stay at the club but would be powerless to stop him leaving if United offer in the area of £25million.

Quote:Simon Kjaer is set to leave Palermo - with the Premier League his preferred destination, Goal.com UK can reveal.

The 21-year-old defender has attracted the interests of Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester United, but is waiting for a firm offer from "the right club" before making a decision on his future.

Speaking exclusively to Goal.com UK, Kjaer's agent Mikkel Beck admitted his client is ready to move his already impressive career on to the next level.

"He is ready to leave for sure, and he is already ready to play in a big team," he said.

Despite interest from Juventus and Barcelona, Beck said he had recommended Premier League football to Kjaer.

"I try to give him the best advice I can, and I'm fortunate to have had the experience of playing in a country like England," said the agent, who performed with distinction for Middlesbrough during a four-year spell in England in the 1990s.

"It's important we, together with Simon's family, come to the right decision so he can continue to develop."

Palermo director Walter Sabatini said this week that Kjaer's contract contains a £10 million [€12m] release clause, and Beck admitted time is running out if Europe's big fish want to net themselves a relative bargain.

"We have a clause that allows him to get out that goes on until - more or less - tomorrow night [Wednesday]," Beck said, emphasising that the expiry of said clause would not prohibit a move after the World Cup.

"We'll see, but if nothing happens, he has a very interesting and important World Cup ahead of him, and we'll have to see what happens afterwards."

Beck, who expects Denmark to surprise a few at the tournament, said that the team which does convince his client to ink a deal would be bagging a mature talent rather than one for the future.

"He's a quality defender, young but with the head of an older, experienced player," he stated. "He's very mature for his age, and he takes responsibility in a very good Palermo side."

The agent also said Kjaer would take the World Cup, as well as any subsequent step up at club level, in his not-inconsiderable stride. "It's his first big tournament, but these kind of things drive players like him. He's someone who knows how to raise his game," enthused Beck.

"The bigger the game is, the better he is. He is consistent, but I think this is something that shows he has the qualities to be a big player."

Kjaer is, however, not keen to force a move whatever the cost, and Beck said his man will only leave Serie A for a European giant that matches his ambitions. "He's ready to leave if the right club comes in," said Beck.

"He has dreams to play in a big team, but he could also stay at Palermo for a year, certainly. It's not the worst case scenario playing in one of top teams in Italy and being one of the most important players."

Kjaer, who grew up supporting Liverpool, has formed a solid partnership for Denmark alongside Anfield star Daniel Agger.

But it is understood that his affinity for the Reds would not hold him back from joinig another Premier League club.

Quote:Sir Alex Ferguson is weighing up a move for AZ Alkmaar’s Argentine international keeper Sergio Romero this summer. The Manchester United boss is a big fan of the 23 year old and may make a move for the £8m rated goalie as he looks for a long term replacement for veteran Edwin Van der Sar.

Having sold Ben Foster to Birmingham City and seemingly unwilling to turn to Tomasz Kuszczak as anything other than back up, Ferguson has been linked with a myriad of potential new custodians and the latest to catch his attention is Romero who has spent the last three seasons in the Dutch Eredivisie where he helped AZ to the title the season before last.

The former Racing Club man is set to be Diego Maradona’s number one choice for the upcoming World Cup and has a great deal of potential and could well be a star in the making and would surely welcome interest from the Premier League big boys.

Quote:Manchester United have been linked with a move for Santos prodigy Paulo Henrique, according to The Mirror.

The talented youngster has been dubbed ‘the new Kaka’ and is being chased by a host of European clubs including United, Bayern Munich, Juventus and both Milan clubs.

Sir Alex Ferguson has said that he is only looking to add one or two players to his squad this summer but with his preference to bring in young players with potential for the future, Henrique could prove to be an attractive option for the United manager.

The 20-year-old was tipped to be included in Dunga’s Brazil squad for the World Cup, after scoring 11 goals in 20 league appearances, but he failed to make the final cut for South Africa.

Santos president Alvaro Luis Ribeiro insists that the player is not for sale this summer but it remains to be seen whether the lure of one of Europe’s top sides will be too much for Henrique to resist.

Quote:Manager Sir Alex Ferguson is understood to be keen to strengthen United's midfield given the constant injuries plaguing Owen Hargreaves and the loss of form from the likes of Michael Carrick and Anderson.

A report in Spanish publication Sport claims that Ferguson has identified the 27-year-old as a key target in bolstering United's capabilities in the middle of the park, particularly from a defensive viewpoint.

While Barca coach Pep Guardiola is said to be keen to retain the services of Toure, reports yesterday stated that the Catalan outfit would consider releasing the player for a fee of €30-35 million.

As a result of dropping own the pecking order, Toure is believed to be seeking a move away from Camp Nou and potential suitors from the English Premier League would be keen to wrap up a deal prior to the World Cup to avoid the player's value soaring after the finals.