Manchester United are prepared to pay as much as £240m to land Barcelona superstar Neymar this summer, according to reports.

Louis van Gaal has made it no secret that he is determined to strengthen his strike-force, with United captain Wayne Rooney yet to get off the mark this season and Javier Hernandez the only other experienced option in attack.

Having seen little progress in their pursuit of Bayern Munich forward Thomas Muller, United are believed to have switched targets to Barcelona’s Neymar, and The Sun is reporting that officials at Old Trafford have approved a huge £240m to try and tempt the Catalan club to part ways with the Brazil international.

The report goes on to add that United will pay the £130m release clause in Neymar’s contract, though that fee will increase to a record-breaking £165m with tax add-ons that would smash the world’s most expensive transfer fee of the £86m that Real Madrid paid Tottenham two years ago for Gareth Bale.

Should Barcelona decide to cash in on Neymar, United are prepared to award him a five-year contract worth an incredible £75m, though the expectation is that Barcelona will reject any approach and will look to secure the 23-year-old to a new long-term contract.

The speculation comes after Barcelona president Josep Bartomeu announced that contract talks are in the pipeline, and that the player himself is very happy at the Nou Camp, having moved from Brazilian side Santos in 2013 for a reported £71.5m in total.

"Neymar feels great at Barca,” declared Bartomeu in an apparent warning shot to United.

“We’ll have renewal talks later. We want him to stay for years and even to retire here.”

United's executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward has come under fire from United fans after failing to bring in any attacking reinforcements despite the departures of Robin van Persie and Radamel Falcao.

United manager Van Gaal clearly sees summer acquisition Memphis Depay as an attacking midfielder, leaving Rooney to lead the line on his own and carry the burden of high expectations at the club. The failure to sign Pedro, who scored on his Chelsea debutafter electing to move to the London club instead, has only angered those fans more, but a move for a player of the caliber of Neymar would certainly go a long way to appeasing their concerns.

Newstac.com is a tech-based site that is dedicated to bringing you the latest technology news and updates around the globe with its exciting features and categories to choose from. Visit us at www.newstac.com