Ronaldinho nearly Red but Queiroz could quit
Following Brazil's early elimination from the Confederations Cup, Ronaldinho will have talks with officials from Paris St Germain tomorrow which should end with confirmation that the brilliant 23-year-old will leave the French capital this summer.
Despite interest from Barcelona, Real Madrid and Newcastle, United are firm favourites to land the midfielder, who has been strongly pursued by Alex Ferguson over the past few months.
United are believed to be willing to match PSG's £11m valuation and are also in the position of being able to pay a hefty down payment after their recent sale of David Beckham.
Ronaldinho will be joined in his discussions by brother Robert Assis, who also acts as his agent, and the Old Trafford outfit will be hoping for good news before the end of the week.
"We will talk with PSG tomorrow but I think he will go. The situation is straightforward now Brazil are out of the Confederations Cup and I expect talks to last until Friday," said Assis.
PSG have indicated they would prefer Ronaldinho to stay but given Assis' comments and their failure to qualify for the Champions League, it seems extremely unlikely the man who wrecked England's World Cup dream last summer will be persuaded.
Barcelona have already indicated they expect to lose out in the race to capture the player and, with Newcastle's bid seemingly doomed to failure, United will be determined they do not come second to Real.
Having already sold David Beckham to the Spanish giants, finding Ronaldinho signing for them as well would be a major blow, particularly as Queiroz could be heading for the Bernabeu.
The former Portugal coach, recruited by Ferguson last summer, has apparently been earmarked as the successor for Vicente del Bosque, who was controversially sacked by Real last night.
While the shock of Del Bosque's departure, less than 24 hours after he secured the Spanish title, just emphasises the difficulty facing anyone who takes charge of the nine-times European Cup winners, United know the lure of the job could take Queiroz away.
Their only hope appears to be Queiroz deciding he would be nothing more than a stop-gap and opting to stay at Old Trafford, where his work has been highlighted as one of the major factors behind United recapturing the Premiership title.
Ferguson said Queiroz represented one of the best signings of his time at Old Trafford, while skipper Roy Keane has said his work on the Red Devils' defence Real's obvious weak point was pivotal.
"Carlos came at a good time for us," said Keane. "He deserves a lot of credit for the improvement of the team, especially for the defensive tightness we had," he said.
If Queiroz were to leave, Ferguson would have a readymade replacement in former United midfielder Mike Phelan, who has also made a positive impression in his role as number three, although the United boss will clearly fight it hard to persuade his current assistant to stay.
However, his efforts are almost certain to go unrewarded if Real president Florentino Perez is determined to land his man.
"All I can tell you is Carlos Queiroz is one of the people we are thinking of. He has the profile we are interested in," said Perez.
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