Rumour : Manchester United's search for midfielder leads them to Valencia's Ever Banega

Manchester United are believed to be looking at Argentine international Ever Banega for a fee of £12.5 million to solve their midfield problems according to the Mirror.

Banega is rumored to be disgruntled with life at Spanish side Valencia and has asked for an immediate move. The midfielder’s contract runs till June 2015, and David Moyes is a known fan of the player’s skills after having tried to sign him for Everton previously.

The deal however could hinge on whether Manchester United are willing to include Mexican striker Javier Hernandez as part of the deal. Valencia are looking for a striker after missing out on Manchester City’s Edin Dzeko, who rejected a move.

Banega has fallen out of favour at the Mestalla this season and was reportedly offered to Italian giants AC Milan who were not very keen on signing him due to disciplinary issues. Banega has been in the news for all the wrong reasons since his arrival at Valencia from Boca Juniors in 2008 including a bizzare incident in which he ran his Ferrari over himself and broke his tibia and fibula.

The 25-year-old is a prodigious talent no doubt but has been highly inconsistent with Valencia over the past season and a half. Add that to his off-field problems, and suddenly he doesn’t look like he would be Moyes’s first choice. What could work in the Argentine’s favour though is Moyes conceding that many of the players he wants to bring to Old Trafford might not be available in the January transfer window and that Banega, when he puts his mind to it, is a very good box-to-box midfielder who can dictate the tempo of the game pretty well.