With La Viola desperate to raise funds, following the collapse of Tomas Repka's proposed switch to West Ham, Euro 2000 goal hero Gomes is heading for the highest bidder, with a whole host of clubs interested in his services.
A move to France has been mooted for much of the summer, with Monaco, Paris Saint Germain and Marseille all keen to buy the Portuguese international.
Lyon are also in the frame, after the sale of Steve Marlet to Fulham, though they are signing Pegguy Luyindula, but sources in Florence indicate that Sir Alex Ferguson is ready to swoop for the 25-year-old, even though Tottenham and Liverpool were believed to be the English sides chasing the striker.
Ferguson already has a major headache in his attack, persevering with Paul Scholes as an auxiliary striker, much to the obvious frustration of Dwight Yorke, Andy Cole and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
The arrival of another forward would, therefore, appear extremely unlikely and chief executive Peter Kenyon suggested on Thursday that no new signings are imminent, following the capture of Laurent Blanc from Internazionale.
However, it is being claimed that United officials will head for Rome on Sunday evening in order to discuss a move for Gomes.
Telephone contact has reportedly been made between The Premiership champions and Fiorentina, with an £8 million transfer the chief topic of conversation.
The former Benfica star is believed to be interested in a switch to England, and particularly to Old Trafford, but it would certainly be a surprise to see Ferguson add to his attacking armoury without off-loading one of his current marksmen.
