Manchester United to Fight Napoli for Italy Midfielder - Report

Premier League champions Manchester United are tracking Italian midfielder Antonio Candreva. The Mirror believes David Moyes will have to fight off former Liverpool and Chelsea boss Rafael Benitez for the player's signature; the Spaniard is now in charge at Napoli.

Candreva spent the 2012/13 Italian season on loan from Udinese to Lazio, for whom he scored six times and created five goals in 35 games. He also played a role in the Rome club's derby win over AS Roma, in the final of the Coppa Italia. In addition, Candreva also impressed during the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup, where he started three of the Azzurri's five games.

According to a statement on the club website, Udinese confirmed they had sold 50% of the player's rights to Lazio, meaning Moyes and Benitez will have to negotiate with both Udinese and Lazio, in order to make a deal for Candreva stick.

Lazio's purchase of Candreva's rights indicates a desire to make the transfer a more permanent one, which will complicate matters for the two Premier League clubs.

Meanwhile, former United defender Danny Higginbotham believes the sale of England striker Wayne Rooney in the summer will help Moyes raise funds to bring new faces to Old Trafford.

"When you look at the players Manchester United have got then, if they want to bring in some more big players and need to generate some money, Rooney is the one that stands out," Higginbotham told talkSPORT.

"They would get decent money for him and that would enable them to bring someone else in. It wouldn't surprise me in the slightest if he did move on," he added.

The former Everton man's future with the Red Devils has been widely speculated on, with a number of clubs, including Arsenal and Chelsea, understood to be interested in signing him. Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement and David Moyes' appointment added to that uncertainty. And according to The Independent, crucial talks between manager and player, to have been held on Wednesday, have been postponed