Borussia Dortmund playmaker Mario Gotze expressed his admiration for Manchester United, and with it opening up a possible move in the summer.
The German international is seen as one of the brightest young talents in Europe and is wanted by almost every big club in the world.
Gotze only recently signed a new contract with the German champions which will keep him at the club until 2016, but the 20-year-old admitted he would be open to a move abroad with United one of his preferred destinations.
"Clubs such as Real Madrid, Barcelona or Manchester United are attractive, these are places where you could develop," he told Sport1.
Gotze has been in brilliant form this season, and has built a nice understanding with Robert Lewandowski and Marco Reus, who are also wanted by some of the top clubs in Europe, with Lewandowski in particular heavily linked with a move to Old Trafford.
Dortmund, however, will not let go of their star asset easily with sporting director Michael Zorc recently saying he wants Gotze to stay with the club for his entire career.
"I would like Mario to be with BVB until he is 35 years old," Zorc told Bild. "We're counting on him through the years.
"Mario is blessed with a talent that BVB have never seen before and in this kind of form, he is difficult to stop."
Meanwhile, United face competition from Liverpool for the signing of Brazilian center-back Dede. The Vasco Da Gama defender is expected to move on in the summer, with the Brazilian club struggling financially and desperate to generate some funds.
"We can't mislead the fans, we will find it very difficult to hold on to Dede because the club needs the resources, and at some point it will happen -- by the middle of the year," Vasco director general Cristiano Koehler said.
"The desire of all is that he stays, but we have to prioritise the payment of wages, taxes and federal agreements, so it is inevitable we will have to sell -- so it is possible, in the middle of the year when the sale goes through, we can use the money to restructure the club and make it safe.
"The player is ambitious and he also wants to experience better opportunities with better pay, and the partners in his ownership want to make the agreement now to develop their investment.
"We have a balance sheet we must meet, and we can't hide the fact."
Dede is seen as one of the best central defenders in Brazil and has been tipped to partner Thiago Silva in the upcoming World Cup in 2014.
Along with United and Liverpool, Juventus and Benfica are also reportedly interested and Vasco are hoping to receive a bid of around £15 million ($22.5 million) for the 24-year-old.