Javi Martinez Toni Kroos Bayern Munich
Bayern Munich playmaker Toni Kroos celebrates with teammate Javi Martinez after scoring against Arsenal in the Champions League, 19 February. Reuters

Summer target William Carvalho said "it could be Manchester United" that he joins next season, amid heightened reports of interest from the Red Devils for the Sporting Lisbon midfielder.

Carvalho has reportedly been scouted several times by United this season, with manager David Moyes also having a look at the defensive midfielder.

The 21-year-old has also been linked with the likes of Real Madrid and Chelsea, with Sporting Lisbon inserting a £37.5 million release clause into his contract, which still has four years to run.

Carvalho, as every player invariably does, admitted to being flattered at being linked with some of the biggest clubs in the world. "It's nice being praised and to know there are some big clubs interested in me," Carvalho said after Sporting's victory over Braga at the weekend.

Moyes is a keen admirer of the midfielder, but the manager is reluctant to trigger the release clause. However, according to the Daily Mail, Sporting are prepared to let go of Carvalho for around £24 million, which is a price which should also suit United.

Asked if he could make a switch to a bigger club next season, Carvalho said he was keeping his options open.

"It could be Manchester United or Real Madrid," he added. "It's just nice to have a great European club after me, but at the moment I'm just totally focused on Sporting and doing my best until the end of the season.

"At the end of the campaign, we will see what happens."

Meanwhile, another high-profile midfielder linked with a move to Old Trafford is Toni Kroos, who is yet to agree a new deal with Bayern Munich.

United have reportedly made their interest known to the German international's representatives and are prepared to bring Kroos to the English Premier League by offering wages of around £250,000 a week, with Bayern set to receive £40 million as transfer fee for a player, who sees his current contract expire at the end of next season.

Kroos' younger brother Felix, who also plays in the Bundesliga for Werder Bremen, admitted the two had discussed a possible move to United, but no decision had been made yet.

"We have already talked about it," Felix told Sky Germany." Manchester has been the team of my dreams since I was a child.

"However, I don't give him any advice. He will take a good decision for himself. There are worse situations than having to decide something like that."