Jose Mourinho is ready to go into battle again with Antonio Conte – this time for Juventus' £53million-rated defender Alex Sandro .
The Manchester United manager has identified the Brazilian international as the man to solve his left-back problem and has urged his club to meet Juventus' £53million asking price.
United 's interest is unlikely to be firmed up until the summer but they could be prompted to enter the market earlier than planned if Conte is able to convince his Chelsea bosses that the 26-year-old is worth the money during the current transfer widow.
Juventus will sell if they can bring in a replacement – and their search has also alerted Paris St Germain to the possibility that Sandro will be sold sooner rather than later.
Mourinho and Conte are currently embroiled in an ugly war of words after the Italian took exception to his rival's claim that some Premier League managers behave like clowns.
The United boss has insisted that he was talking about his own touchline antics when he was a young manager.
But neither man has stood down and their spat adds extra spice for the fight to land Sandro.
United have been happy with the recent form of Luke Shaw and are prepared to give the England international until the end of the season to prove he still has a future at Old Trafford.
But Mourinho still wants Sandro and United have promised to back their manager with more hard transfer cash ahead of what will be his third season at the club.
United also believe they can wait on the deal because Conte's long-term future at Chelsea remains uncertain.