David Gill is battling to keep alive United’s £35m swoop for Wesley Sneijder.
The Premier League champions have been trying to secure a deal for the Dutch World Cup star for the past week.
But Sir Alex Ferguson yesterday cast doubt over the move, attempting to quell speculation surrounding his interest in the Inter Milan player.
The finances of what would be a club record deal for United have made negotiations sensitive.
And with Inter this week insisting only a mega-money offer would convince them to sell, Gill has been working hard to land Ferguson’s top target.
United’s chief executive is understood to have met with Inter officials at a European Club Association summit in Zurich on Wednesday.
But there is also the issue of convincing Sneijder to lower his £200,000-a-week salary demands.
Sources in Holland have long-claimed the former Real Madrid playmaker is keen on a move to Old Trafford, while United have been heartened by suggestions he would be prepared to compromise on his wage expectations.
Gill stayed behind from United’s pre-season tour of the US to try to conclude a deal for the 27-year-old, who Ferguson believes is the ideal successor to the retired Paul Scholes.
Although Sneijder comes in above Ferguson’s self-imposed policy of not signing players over the age of 26, he believes the Holland international would thrive at United.
Udinese winger Alexis Sanchez was another target, but the Chile star insisted he would only leave Serie A for Barcelona. And Ferguson this week reluctantly accepted he would miss out on Arsenal’s Samir Nasri as well.
That left Sneijder – a player United have chased since last summer – as the standout target.
But speaking from United’s tour of the US, Ferguson attempted to pour cold water on his interest.
"The situation is that there is no real interest in Wesley Sneijder at this moment in time for a lot of reasons," he said. "There is nothing I can tell you about it. I have not really been involved in it since I came across here."
Ferguson has generally made it a policy not to comment on transfer speculation, with his remarks about Nasri this week bucking that trend.
He has admitted that he still hopes to find a successor for Scholes, despite already spending a combined £50m on Ashley Young, Phil Jones and David de Gea this summer.
United have also been linked with Tottenham playmaker Luka Modric who is also a target for Chelsea.
But Ferguson has reiterated the difficulty he faces in filling the void left by Scholes.
"It is a loss," he said. "Paul was a player of a lifetime. In his 20 years at the club, it is hard to pick out a bad game. He was such a consistent player for us.
"I don't think we will find another Paul Scholes. But hopefully we can replace him. Maybe we will find a different type of player.
"Obviously, there is a bit of work being done on that at the moment by our scouting department.
"But also we are analysing the capabilities of the young players from our youth team. We will give them that opportunity.
"Time and time again we have faced this problem. We have lost great players and you are worrying about it. But eventually something turns up, either through our youth system or we will identify someone."
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