By Simon Austin

Hargreaves passed a medical at Old Trafford last week

Owen Hargreaves is expected to complete his transfer to Manchester United next week, BBC Sport understands.

United have agreed a fee in the region of �17m with Bayern Munich for the England midfielder.

Hargreaves passed a medical at United last week and all that remains is the formality of signing a contract, which will be for either three or four years.

The 26-year-old will fly to Canada on Tuesday to visit his family and should return to Manchester early next week.

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United failed with bids to sign Hargreaves last summer and in January.

The midfielder enjoyed an illustrious 10 seasons at Bayern, winning six league titles and the 2001 Champions League.

But his final season was plagued by injury and ended in disappointment, as Bayern finished fourth in the Bundesliga, missing out on Champions League qualification.

Hargreaves missed four months at the start of the campaign because of a broken leg and went on to play in only nine league games.

He will also miss England's upcoming matches against Brazil and Estonia because of a knee problem.