MANCHESTER UNITED face a transfer tug-of-war with MLS side Los Angeles FC for the signing of striker Mario Mandzukic, according to reports.
Red Devils boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is desperate to land the Croatian veteran in January and bolster his depleted strike force.
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SunSport exclusively told you United were back in the hunt for the Juve star after coming close to signing him last summer.
But Mandzukic, 33, is a target for Los Angeles who currently sit top of the Western Conference table according to Calcio Mercato.
Juventus are open to cashing in on the striker having fallen down the pecking under in Maurizio Sarri’s plans this season.
The Italian side had accepted an offer from Qatar outfit Al Rayyan but Mandzukic rejected the chance to land a £7million-a-year-deal in the Middle East.
It will come as music to the ears of Solskjaer after admitting signing a striker in the new year remains his top priority.
The 6ft 3in forward would bring an aerial threat his attack that has been missing since Romelu Lukaku’s departure.
Solskjaer said: “When we let Alexis [Sanchez] and Romelu go, you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to see that it’s forwards that next time we’re going to recruit. We’re looking for some creativity and goals.
“But there’s no point getting players in that you’re not 100 per cent sure about because when you get players in, you need the right ones that are going to stay here for a longer period.
“That’s the long-term thinking that we have to show. I can’t think ‘I need a player because this is my reputation’. No, it’s the club.
“There were strikers (available) but they weren’t the ones we wanted. We couldn’t get the one we wanted.”
Mandzukic is a serial winner having won nine league titles across three countries.
He has bagged 44 times in 162 appearances for Juventus in his four years at the club with 33 in 89 for his country.
