Man Utd could move for Claudio Marchisio

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson could finally have identified the long term replacement for Paul Scholes, as reports from Italy suggest United are weighing up a January transfer move for Italian international midfielder Claudio Marchisio.

Marchisio is currently enjoying life at Juventus, who sit at the top of Serie A, but had previously hinted he would love to move to England should the opportunity present itself.

The 25 year old midfielder - who is comfortable playing anywhere in the midfield, but prefers playing in the middle - showed last week just how important of a player he is, scoring two goals and receiving the man of the match award against current Serie A champions AC Milan, in a 4-1 victory.

However, Man Utd could have to pay as much as 15.5m GBP to bring the Italian star to Old Trafford.

According to reports, January could be too early for a transfer to take place but Alex Ferguson has his eyes on a move next summer.