Werder, Juve Set To Lose Out On Portsmouth Bound Diarra
Werder Bremen and Juventus look set to lose out in their efforts to sign Frenchman Alou Diarra from Lyon.
zoom - galleria According to Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas, the midfielder prefers a switch to the English premiership.
Diarra has recently made it clear that he wishes to leave Lyon, and today, Aulas explained that he thought Diarra would sign a contract with Portsmouth.
"Portsmouth has the best chance of signing Alou. He could move in the next few days," he told reporters.
Aulas expects to receive a transfer fee in the region of €9 million.
It had been suggested earlier that Bremen could do business with Lyon with a swap deal involving Miroslav Klose.
However Lyon have David Trezeguet as their prime target and Klose has apparently promised himself to Bayern.
Diarra has had previous spells with Bayern Munich amateurs, Liverpool, Le Havre, Bastia and Lens.
He made clear his intentions to leave Lyon after a falling out with ex-manager Gerard Houllier, a decision that has not changed since his departure.
Mathew Burt
He is clearly an idiot if he chooses Portsmouth over us, or Bremen.