LONDON, September 1, 2014 (AFP) – Manchester United have agreed a sensational deal to sign Colombia striker Radamel Falcao on a season-long loan from Monaco, according to widespread British media reports on Monday.
The prolific 28-year-old forward, who missed the World Cup with a serious knee injury, has also been linked with Real Madrid, Manchester City and Arsenal.
But several media outlets, including the Press Association, the BBC and Sky Sports, reported that United had secured his services — subject to a medical examination — on the final day of the close-season transfer window.
The Press Association reported that United had agreed to pay Monaco a fee of around £12 million ($19.9 million, 15.2 million euros) for the loan.
Falcao, who has scored 20 goals in 51 appearances for Colombia, is under contract at Monaco until 2018.
Since returning from injury at the start of the season, he has scored two goals in three matches, but he was left out of the squad for Monaco’s 1-1 draw at home to Lille in Ligue 1 on Saturday.
If completed, the deal would leave United manager Louis van Gaal with a rich pool of striking talent at his disposal, as Falcao would join Robin van Persie and Wayne Rooney at Old Trafford.
United are rebuilding after a disappointing seventh-place finish in the Premier League last season and have spent around £130 million on new players, including a British-record £59.7 million move for Angel di Maria.
They have also offloaded a numbers of players, with Shinji Kagawa returning to former club Borussia Dortmund on Sunday and Javier Hernandez reported to be in talks over a loan move to Real Madrid.
Van Gaal is still waiting for his first competitive win as United manager, after two draws and a defeat in the league and a humiliating 4-0 loss to third-tier Milton Keynes Dons in the League Cup.
Falcao made his professional debut with Colombian second-tier side Lanceros Boyaca at the age of only 13 before joining Argentine giants River Plate in 2005.
After four years in Buenos Aires he signed for Porto, where he established himself as one of Europe’s most lethal marksmen, scoring 72 goals in 87 games.
He won the Portuguese Cup in his first season and helped Porto to a treble of league, cup and Europa League honours in 2011, scoring the only goal in the Europa League final against Braga.
A move to Atletico Madrid followed later that year and he won the Europa League again in his first season, scoring twice as Diego Simeone’s side overcame Athletic Bilbao 3-0 in the final.
Falcao joined Monaco from Atletico last year in a deal worth around 60 million euros, having scored 70 goals in 91 games during his time in Spain.
He scored nine goals in his first 17 league games with Monaco, but his debut season was curtailed in January when he sustained a knee ligament injury that forced him to miss the World Cup.
