Man Utd and Juventus chasing James Rodriguez

Manchester United are set to battle it out over the signing of Real Madrid superstar James Rodriguez, according to reports in Italy.

Italian sports newspaper Corriere dello Sport is reporting that Manchester United’s interest in Colombian attacking midfielder James Rodriguez is already known, and now Italian champions Juventus are ready to contest the signing of the Real Madrid player with the Red Devils.

Rodriguez has struggled to hold down a regular place in the Madrid side since Zinedine Zidane took the reins at the Santiago Bernabeu in January, and has had to content himself with a substitute’s roll for the most part.

There were rumours throughout the European press that Rodriguez was set to leave the eleven time champions of Europe during the summer transfer window, with United and Chelsea both credited with an interest in the former FC Porto and Monaco man, but no move materialised.

And now it would seem that, if Rodriguez is to leave Madrid, he would have options outside of the Premier League, with Juventus weighing up the possibility of signing the Colombian start.

One potential stumbling block to a Madrid departure for Rodriguez is that the club have recently been hit with a transfer ban, meaning they would be unable to register a replacement until 2018.

Rodriguez signed for Madrid for £63 million in 2014, following a string of impressive displays at that year’s World Cup.