Manchester United are prepared to use Nani as a makeweight in their bid to bring in Juventus midfielder Claudio Marchisio to Old Trafford in the summer transfer window.
Nani only has one year remaining on his contract, and despite Sir Alex Ferguson insisting that he wants to keep the Portuguese winger next season, he is likely to be sold if a new contract is not agreed upon soon.
Marchisio has been linked with a move to United for quite a while, and United are in need of a quality box-to-box midfielder in their lineup.
United are preparing a £20 million ($31 million) bid for Marchisio, and are prepared to throw in Nani to smooth over the move, according to the Daily Mirror.
That would of course reduce the transfer fee involved, and it remains to be seen if Marchisio will be willing to leave Juventus in the summer, with the Italian club just sealing their second straight Serie A title.
Marchisio, who is a product of the Italian champions' youth system, recently insisted he had no plans of leaving Juve, saying he wanted to end his career with the club.
"I've been hearing rumors for as long as I've been at Juve," he said last week. "Attracting the attention of other top clubs is always nice, but I signed a long contract with Juventus.
"I want to end my career with this shirt."
So, it looks unlikely that United will be able to persuade Marchisio to leave Juventus anytime soon, but then with the Red Devils going from strength to strength any player will find it difficult to turn down the challenge, while the chance to play in the English Premier League will also be seen as an enticing prospect.
Apart from Marchisio, United have been heavily linked with Robert Lewandowski of Borussia Dortmund and Ezequiel Garay of Benfica.
The Premier League champions are also attempting to bring back Cristiano Ronaldo, whose agent recently admitted his client could leave Real Madrid at the end of the season.
