Former Valencia sporting director Fernando Gomez admits the club were interested in Javier 'Chicharito' Hernandez before he joined Manchester United in 2010.

The lively forward became a star for hometown club CD Guadalajara after breaking into the first-team in 2006.

It was towards the end of his time with Chivas that Hernandez won his first of 109 caps for Mexico.

Hernandez was also making waves in Europe, with scouts from Manchester United heading to Mexico to watch him play at the beginning of 2010.

United wanted to conclude a deal before Hernandez showcased his talents at the 2010 World Cup, and a deal was agreed in April.

But things could have worked out differently if Valencia had been more proactive, according to Fernando.

Asked by Tribalfootball about his greatest near misses in the transfer market, he said: "This chapter doesn't exist during my stage at VCF.

"We had little money and we were contacting players who wanted to come to the club and to a big league.

"There was no 'almost signed', our first options always came, logically, in such a limited economic market.

"Maybe Chicharito (when he played in Mexico), we always liked him, but when we got interested in him, Manchester United had already picked him up."

Hernandez, now with LA Galaxy, ended up scoring 59 goals in 157 appearances for the Red Devils.