Valencia sustained a broken ankle against Rangers in September, but is now close to return to action.
“He was fantastic last season, absolutely brilliant,” the Scot is quoted as saying in The Sun.
“He was a great signing, he really was.
“The great thing about him was he takes the ball with such great strength and balance. He can take the ball up to the other end of the pitch for you. We missed that pace and acceleration.
“Although Nani has done fantastic – I mean he’s been a revelation this season – we’ve missed that.”
