Manchester United agree fee for Romelu Lukaku

The 24-year-old's signing represents a coup for United and their manager Jose Mourinho as the latter's former club champions Chelsea had earmarked him as their top striking target for the close season.

Going in the opposite direction will be United and England record goalscorer Wayne Rooney, who according to press reports is willing to take a cut in his 13million a year wages to return to his first club, but with the promise of more first team football than at United last year.

It brings Mourinho and Lukaku back together again as the Portuguese manager in his second spell as Chelsea manager had sold him to Everton in 2014 for 28million.

United said in a statement on its website it was "delighted to announce a fee has been agreed with Everton for the transfer of Romelu Lukaku, subject to a medical & personal terms.

"A further announcement will be made in due course," added United.

Lukaku, who is reported to have been offered wages of over Pound 200,000 a week by United, should have returned to England on Thursday for pre-season training with Everton but instead was pictured training with his close friend and the most expensive player in the world, United midfielder Paul Pogba, who he is on holiday with in Los Angeles.

United are due in Los Angeles this weekend for a pre- season tour.

According to British media reports the decisive factor in Lukaku's head being turned towards United and not a return to the club he idolised as a schoolboy Chelsea were Pogba and their agent Mino Raiola.

Raiola did extremely well out of United last year making an estimated Pound 40m from Pogba's transfer from Juventus alone while stablemates Henrykh Mkhitaryan and Zlatan Ibrahimovic also joined the 'Red Devils'.