London – Sir Alex Ferguson has joined the hunt for Atletico Madrid’s £47million-rated striker Radamel Falcao.
Manchester City and Chelsea have each been strongly linked with the striker, who has scored 54 goals for Atletico since arriving from FC Porto in 2011.
But it is understood Manchester United have joined the bidding for the 27-year-old Colombian and are prepared to let Javier Hernandez move the other way as part of the deal.
The Premier League leaders are ready to meet the £47m buyout clause in Falcao’s contract by offering the Spaniards £27m cash plus Hernandez, who they value at £20m.
Although reports in Spain yesterday suggested a down payment has been made, it is believed United’s interest is still in its early stages.
Atletico coach Diego Simeone responded to the speculation yesterday by saying: ‘Falcao is a great player and it’s logical that the best teams in the world are interested in him. It doesn’t surprise me.’
If United were to land Falcao it would be a bitter blow to Chelsea, who thought they were winning the race to sign him, and City boss Roberto Mancini.
However, any club signing Falcao will have to resolve an issue of third-party ownership. A company run by former United and Chelsea chief executive Peter Kenyon and agent Jorge Mendes owns a stake in the player after helping to finance his £34m move from Porto. – Daily Mail