Valencia have reportedly earmarked Manuel Pellegrini as their number one choice to replace Gary Neville at the end of the season.
Neville is widely expected to leave the Mestalla when his contract expires in June, having won just three of his 16 league matches in charge since taking over in December.
Pellegrini will also be available in the summer when he leaves Manchester City to be replaced by Pep Guardiola, and the Chilean has already expressed his desire to remain in Europe for his next job.
La Liga appears to be the most likely destination for the 62-year-old, who spent nine years in Spain's top flight during spells at Villarreal, Real Madrid and Malaga.
Superdeporte reports that Valencia will stick with Neville until the end of the current campaign despite increasing calls for the Englishman to be sacked from his first job in management.
However, Los Che are already putting plans in place to find a successor, and could open talks with Pellegrini in the coming weeks.
Barney Corkhill
