Manchester United Transfer News: Red Devils Must Pounce for Ilkay Gundogan Deal

Ilkay Gundogan's contract situation at Signal Iduna Park is a growing concern for Borussia Dortmund, but the playmaker's uncertain future with the German giants presents a window of opportunity for European suitors, namely Manchester United.

David Moyes' side are in a more dire need of midfield reinforcement than any other continental powers of the same status, and their second half to the season hinges on an increase of star quality at Old Trafford.

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According to Stephan Uersfeld of ESPN, Gundogan returned to training this week having missed the first half of the campaign due to a back injury, his contract negotiations being put on hold for the duration.

As things stand, the midfielder's deal is set to expire in the summer of 2015, but Dortmund are now eager to find out their player's intentions.

The side from North Rhine-Westphalia are understandably eager to extend the contract of their player, one of Germany's brightest upcoming talents, fast becoming a more prominent part of the national team since making his debut in 2011.

Though little has changed at United this season compared to the squad Sir Alex Ferguson fielded in last term's title-winning campaign, the Red Devils have certainly struggled to compete with the same ferocity this time around.

Moyes has found central midfield to be a problem area in recent months, and although the summer acquisition of Marouane Fellaini was tipped by some to be the engine-room steel they required, the Belgian's introduction hasn't made the impact some would have hoped.

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Figures such as Michael Carrick, Tom Cleverley, Phil Jones, Anderson, Ryan Giggs and Darren Fletcher have all tried their hand in central midfield, but no combination of any of those players has made for a winning blend.

In Gundogan, United have a well-rounded prospect whose addition would assuredly give the influx of both youth and immediate first-team talent that United should be seeking.

His lack of involvement this term gives little in terms of recent relevance, but Squawka statistics show that the 23-year-old boasted the best passing accuracy of any Dortmund player last season at 87 percent. What's more, the anchor also succeeded in 51 of his 64 tackle attempts and completed 58 of his 90 attempted dribbles.

The fact that Gundogan has less than 18 months remaining on his deal means both player and club alike must decide on the best course of action in the near future, with Juergen Klopp's team perhaps aghast to the idea of losing another free transfer in 2015 as they recently have Robert Lewandowski, per BBC Sport.

That being said, The Times' Oliver Kay has stated there's no chance of a deal coming about this winter:

Uersfeld's report goes on to state that Real Madrid are among the clubs interested in signing the young star, showing exactly what level of competition Moyes has on his hands in sealing a potential deal.

However, this is one scenario where the stars would appear to be aligning in the right way for the Manchester United boss, who must pull out all the stops in order to solve his side's woes.