United eye £15m bargain Nesta

Manchester United are hoping to pull off a double coup by signing Alessandro Nesta for less than £20 million and striking a blow against high transfer fees.

Senior United sources believe the Lazio and Italy defender could be bought for as little as £15m.

If they pull it off, United think it could set a new benchmark for transfers at what most observers would regard as a sensible level.

United are confident that Lazio would find such an offer difficult to resist in a barren transfer climate where it is clear that Italian clubs are struggling for money.

Last season, the 26-year-old Lazio captain would have commanded a price of at least £25m on the open market as he is regarded as the world's leading defender.

But Lazio have spent heavily in recent seasons and now must sell to pay off their debts. Other top clubs in Italy are in the same position, leaving only the leading Premiership and Spanish clubs as possible buyers.

United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is known to be a huge admirer of Nesta and watched him a number of times last season.