Michael Owen in Manchester United talks

Michael Owen was last night on the verge of completing a sensational move to Manchester United.

Sources close to the England striker confirmed he was in talks with Old Trafford about joining on a free transfer.

And after completing a medical, the deal was expected to go through imminently.

The discussions were said to have taken place at the Lowry Hotel in Salford, which was used by England when they played at Old Trafford .

A source close to Owen's camp last night said: "The deal is on. It could be done in the next couple of days."

United. last night refused to confirm the deal, but would not deny they had met Owen.

Speculation about the transfer started yesterday afternoon and the odds on the 29-year-old switching to the Premier League champions tumbled from 20-1 to 4-9 in just a few hours.

Signing Owen, who has been a free agent since his deal with Newcastle expired on Wednesday, would be a major gamble for manager Sir Alex Ferguson given the player's injury record, As well as that, United fans were expecting Fergie to splash out to replace Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez.

But Sir Alex may feel Owen is a risk worth taking given his goalscoring pedigree, especially if he can get him to agree to a short-term pay-as-you-play deal.

Ferguson pulled off a similar coup when he landed Henrik Larsson on a temporary deal a couple of seasons ago and the Swede proved a big hit.

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