Manchester United ready to move for West Ham star

Manchester United are being linked with a January move for Marko Arnautovic having reportedly opted out of making a concrete offer in the summer, according to the Mirror.

With the likes of Romelu Lukaku and Marcus Rashford struggling in front of goal at club level, Jose Mourinho is keen to bolster his attacking ranks and has identified the West Ham forward as a potential target.

The Austrian’s agent and brother Danijel recently claimed that the 29-year-old needs to “play for a top team” and that there was a chance he could leave the Hammers having become a key player at the club, particularly since switching to a centre-forward role.

Arnautovic’s ability to play through the middle or wide will be a plus point to United, who are believed to be readying an offer in the region of £50m for the former Stoke star.

The versatile forward has enjoyed a modest start to the season, with five league goals in 11 appearances, but is on course to usurp last season’s tally of 11 having become the first West Ham player to reach double figures since they were last promoted back into the top-flight.

Arnautovic has played under Jose Mourinho in the past, on loan at Inter in the 2009/10 season, though he made just three league appearances, all as a substitute, so the Portuguese has seemingly had a significant change of heart.