Angel delight! Real Madrid winger Di Maria AGREES personal terms with Man Utd

ANGEL DI MARIA is closing in on a move to Manchester United after agreeing personal terms over a switch from Real Madrid.

New United boss Louis Van Gaal, who will officially take control following the Netherlands' World Cup third-place play-off against hosts Brazil tomorrow, has left the job of acquiring the club's top targets in the hands of executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward.

And according to MARCA, United are set to complete their third major signing of the summer after Argentina star Di Maria accepted the club's £150,000-a-week contract offer.

If a fee can be agreed, Di Maria - currently preparing for Sunday's World Cup final against Germany - will join Luke Shaw and Ander Hererra in making the switch to Old Trafford.


Talks over a new deal for Di Maria to stay at the Bernabeu have been scrapped, with Madrid unwilling to match his high wage demands.

Madrid are ready to offload 26-year-old and want around £40m, but United value him closer to £30m.

If United can agree a fee with Madrid and clinch the transfer of Di Maria, who has also attracted interest from Chelsea and PSG, it would represent another boost for Woodward.

The United chief was under huge pressure to perform in the transfer market this summer, having been heavily criticised for failing to land any of former manager David Moyes' top targets last year.


And the arrival of Di Maria would be the another signal that Woodward is keen to avoid a repeat of last season's seventh-place finish ahead of Van Gaal taking the helm.

Source: dailystar

 ( Click on the Picture for more pictures )

For every Manchester United fan, both young and old, the release of the new home kit conjures a unique sense of excitement for the forthcoming season - and that has never been more evident than now.

Ahead of the much-anticipated 2014/15 campaign and the start of the Louis van Gaal era, we are delighted to officially unveil the first images of the players in their new kits. 

As you will see in our gallery of images, the shirt is predominantly red with white collar and cuffs, plus a red and black trim. It will be available to buy from the Old Trafford Megastore and online via United Direct from 16 July.

Notably, the new kit will be worn first on 23 July when van Gaal's men face MLS side LA Galaxy as part of this summer's Tour 2014 presented by Aon.

Source: ManUtd Official

Not to be outdone, Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo has rallied his team-mates together to post a Portugal squad selfie on Twitter.

In what is becoming a growing trend amongst nations competing at this summer’s World Cup, the Fifa Ballon d’Or holder is joined by Manchester United star Nani and ex-Liverpool midfielder Raul Meireles.

An assistant coach who specialises in opposition scouting, Marcel Bout joins Manchester United with a reputation for achieving success with various top-flight clubs around Europe.  

The 51-year-old Dutchman began his coaching career with Feyenoord in 1995 and worked for the Rotterdam-based club until 2004, when he took a job at FC Volendam. Both roles involved various duties that circled around youth team management and scouting. 

Bout’s path eventually crossed with Louis van Gaal's in 2006 upon his appointment as youth team coach at AZ Alkmaar, where United’s new manager had just finished his first season in charge of the first team. As part of a successful backroom staff, the pair went on to win the Eredivisie title ahead of Steve McClaren’s FC Twente and Dutch giants Ajax. 

Van Gaal became manager of Bayern Munich in the summer of 2009, while Bout adopted the role of head coach at Telstar. The pair were reunited in Bavaria a season later, however, just after Bayern had claimed a historic league and cup double. The German Community Shield followed before van Gaal’s departure at the end of 2010/11. 

Bout remained part of Bayern's backroom team and moved up to assistant manager alongside interim boss Andries Jonker. He was then retained by Jupp Heynckes, before taking a job as assistant coach, technical analyst and scout with the Netherlands Under-21s. Here, he would once again work closely with van Gaal, who remains the national team manager for this summer's World Cup in Brazil.

Together, when the prestigious tournament is over, Bout and van Gaal hope to bring the good times back to the Theatre of Dreams.

Source: ManUtd Official

Former Manchester United midfielder Ji-sung Park has called time on his playing career at the age of 33 due to a persistent knee injury.

Park, who joined the Reds from PSV Eindhoven in 2005, played 205 times for United and scored 27 goals before departing to QPR in 2012. He finished his career this season with a loan spell back at PSV.

Here, we pay tribute to a player who became popular with the fans for his commitment to the Old Trafford cause… 

Sum him up It’s easy to overlook Ji’s technical and tactical nous when you consider the ground he covered in matches and the sheer hard work he was willing to put in. Yet all those attributes often made him the ideal counter-balance to Cristiano Ronaldo on the opposite flank of Sir Alex Ferguson’s all-conquering side in the mid-to-late 2000s. Park was a versatile performer on either flank or when set on specific midfield missions.

Best game Arsenal will recall several troubled encounters with the Korean, who often caused them problems with his clever positional play, tactical knowhow and ceaseless running, but Ji’s man-marking job on Andrea Pirlo in 2010’s Champions League clash with AC Milan at San Siro stands out as the kind of selfless sacrifice he would make for the greater cause of the team. It was a characteristic he displayed regularly, rarely better than this.

Red remembered Commitment to the cause quickly garners favour among fans of any club, but Park rapidly endeared himself to supporters after moving from PSV in 2005 when, after a tireless Premier League debut against Everton, he was named Man of the Match. First impressions count, and for a player who became known as ‘Three-lung Park’, that was merely a sign of things to come.

What are your favourite memories of Ji-sung Park as a Red?

Jose Mourinho joins Soccer Aid 2014’s list of latest big name signings as manager of the Rest of the World team.

Other signings include Hollywood star Jeremy Renner (The Avengers, The Bourne Legacy, The Hurt Locker), Italian footballing legend Alessandro Del Piero and Santiago Cabrera (The Musketeers, Heroes), as the Rest of the World take on England in Soccer Aid 2014 at Old Trafford.

The epic sporting event takes place on Sunday 8 June. As the nation prepares for a summer of football, the two star-studded squads of football legends and the world’s biggest stars will compete in an electrifying football match all in aid of UNICEF, the world’s leading children’s organisation.

Jose Mourinho said: "Thanks to UNICEF for asking me to manage The Rest of the World at Soccer Aid at Old Trafford. I'm looking forward to beating Robbie Williams' and Big Sam’s England team and raising money for UNICEF. Buy your tickets at manutd.com/socceraid or call 0845 456 2014. See you there, it will be a special night!”

Prices start from just £20 for adults and from £5 for Under 16s. Premium seating is available at £40, while hospitality packages are also on sale.

Money raised through Soccer Aid goes to UNICEF's invaluable work helping children around the world. This will be the fifth Soccer Aid event, with the previous matches, held at Wembley in 2008 and at Old Trafford in 2006, 2010 and 2012, raising over £12million in total for UNICEF's work.

The teams:

England:

The Celebrities: Robbie Williams (Captain and Assistant Manager), Bradley Walsh (Coach), Matt Smith, Stephen Moyer, Jack Whitehall, Mark Owen, Olly Murs, Paddy McGuinness, Jonathan Wilkes, Jamie Theakston, Ben Shephard, John Bishop, Marvin Humes.

The Legends: Sam Allardyce (Manager), Peter Reid (Coach), Teddy Sheringham, David Seaman, Jamie Carragher, Jamie Redknapp.

Rest of the World:

The Celebrities: Michael Sheen (Captain), Gordon Ramsay, Adam Richman, James McAvoy, Patrick Kielty, Nicky Byrne, Santiago Cabrera, Jeremy Renner.


The Legends: José Mourinho (Manager), Jaap Stam, Edwin van der Sar, Alessandro Del Piero, Edgar Davids.

Source: ManUtd Official "Tickets And Hospitality"