Real Madrid have reached an agreement with Manchester United for Dutch striker Ruud van Nistelrooy, the Primera Liga club said on Thursday. Van Nistelrooy will join the Royal club on a three-year-contract, Real announced on their official website. Financial details of the move were not revealed but Spanish media reported earlier in the day that the deal is worth around 15 million Euros ($19.12 million). The 30-year-old is scheduled to undergo a medical early on Friday before being presented to the media later in the day. The Dutch international has asked to leave Old Trafford two weeks ago, sparking a bidding war between Real Madrid and German champions Bayern Munich. Van Nistelrooy fell out with United manager Alex Ferguson who subsequently left him on the bench towards the end of last season.
The former PSV Eindhoven ace will face strong competition at the Santiago Bernabeu as he will compete with Raul, Robinho, Julio Baptista, Antonio Cassano and Ronaldo for a place in the starting line-up. Van Nistelrooy, who has scored 28 goals in 54 international appearances, was a member of Holland's squad in the 2006 World Cup finals in Germany. He scored 150 goals for the Red Devils in all competitions since joining them from Eindhoven in 2001 for a then British record fee of 19 million pounds ($35.39 million). Van Nistelrooy is Real's third signing this summer after Juventus duo Fabio Cannavaro and Emerson. He will link-p with former Manchester United teammate David Beckham.
