Mario Mandzukic ‘set to start training with Man Utd as determined Juventus star pushes for January transfer’

MARIO MANDZUKIC is reportedly planning on starting training with Manchester United next month as he pushes to seal a move to Old Trafford in January.

Juventus are determined to offload the veteran striker, who hasn't played at all for them this season after being frozen out by Maurizio Sarri.

United were close to landing the 33-year-old last summer as part of a package to sign his teammate Paulo Dybala before that deal fell through.

But the two clubs are now close to an agreement and Mandzukic is after special permission to begin training with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side early, according to .

The Croatian has already settled on a move to Manchester and wants a month to integrate with his new teammates as soon as an informal deal is brokered, before officially completing his move on January 1.

One of the most famous examples of this happening was the time Thiago Silva spent training with AC Milan without playing after the Serie A giants prematurely agreed his 2009 transfer with Fluminense.

Juventus have reportedly already sent their director of football Fabio Paratici to London to thrash out a deal with United for Mandzukic.

The striker has yet to be given a minute of first-team football this season despite notching ten goals and laying on six assists last term.

He offers the kind of experience and presence in attack United are missing after losing Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez to Inter Milan this summer.

The Red Devils have been left with a young and fairly inexperienced striking crop of Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and Mason Greenwood.

United could be braced for late competition from Qatari club Al Duhail SC who are prepared to offer him a staggering wage packet.

Managed by former United assistant Rui Faria, the club are ready to offer £6.4m-a-year in a bid to gazump the deal.

The ex-Atletico Madrid forward currently earns around £200,000-a-week at Juventus - the club's sixth-highest earner, despite his lack of game time.