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Tottenham close in on Real Madrid star

Lassana Diarra

Tottenham are close to completing a deal to sign Real Madrid midfielder Lassana Diarra for a reported £10m.

The 26-year-old joined Real from Portsmouth for £20m in 2008 and has scored one goal in 89 appearances.

Paris-born Diarra, who has 28 caps for France, started his career with Le Havre before joining Chelsea in 2005 and Arsenal two years later. www.bbc.co.uk

Massive fan of Lassana i think hes a top player, hes not the sort of player that hits the headlines but that certainly doesn't mean hes not doing a good job. The defensive midfield position is one of the most underrated position on a football pitch in my opinion. They themselves are charged with stopping opponents midfielders making forward runs from midfield, they are there to cut out through balls and just spread play about with no fuss at all. Would be a top player for Spurs, he would give the likes of Huddlestone, Modric and Dyer the licence to go forward with them knowing that Diarra will always sit back and not commit too often.