United and Juve eye Iberian midfielder addition

Manchester United will fight it out with Italian giants Juventus to sign Malaga midfielder Isco, according to reports in Italy.

The 20-year-old has made great strides at La Rosaleda, since joining the club from La Liga rivals Valencia in 2011, and played a pivotal part in helping Los Boquerones qualify for the Champions League last season.

Now, talkSPORT is reporting that Red Devils boss Sir Alex Ferguson wants to take Isco to Old Trafford, and that an offer could be made as early as January - though the likelihood is that a transfer won't take place until next summer.

Isco was part of Spain's squad at the recent Olympic Games, and he's carried his impressive form into the new 2012/13 campaign, marking Malaga's maiden Champions League match with two goals against Zenit St Petersburg last month.

His performances have unsurprisingly caught the eye of a number of top European clubs, who will continue to monitor the Iberian's progress over the next few months.

Juventus are the ones ready to make a concrete offer, though, which could prompt Manchester United to move sooner rather than later, or risk losing out on another transfer target.