Wes Brown ready to leave Old Trafford …

Manchester United defender Wes Brown has indicated that he is prepared to leave the club next summer, with Newcastle United his most likely destination.

Brown has stalled on a new contract offer from the club and has indicated to friends that it is now unlikely that he will sign, instead waiting out the remainder of his contract and becoming a free agent at the end of the season.

The current deal on the table from United is thought to be in the region of £40,000 a week, considerably less than most of the first team players, but that figure will not be improved upon.

Newcastle manager Sam Allardyce has long coveted the versitile defender and sees Brown as a partial answer to Newcastle's current defensive frailties.

With Alan Smith and Nicky Butt already at the club, Allardyce is confident Brown can be convinced it is the right move for him.

Brown has been with United for 11 years though his career has been punctuated by a number of serious injuries and a battle when fit to dislodge established names, in particular club captain Gary Neville.

Brown is currently enjoying a prolonged spell in the first team curtosey of a long-term injury to Neville. However, the news that Sir Alex Ferguson is looking for a right-back, possibly as soon as the next transfer window, has dismayed Brown.

Ferguson is believed to have already made inquiries about Bayern Munich's German international Philip Lahm and Willy Sagnol.

The current deal on the table from United is thought to be in the region of £40,000 a week, considerably less than most of the first team players, but that figure will not be improved upon.