Inter coach Roberto Mancini admitted last night that he needed to strengthen his midfield following the season ending injury discovered during Ollie Dacourt's knee operation in the morning. With Patrick Vieira and Dejan Stankovic also struggling, Mancini fears Inter's bid for a Scudetto and Champions League Double could be derailed if they do not find a new ball-winner for the second-half of the season.

Diarra has been in-and-out of Real coach Bernd Schuster's first team this term and it's reported he can be signed for the right price. Moratti is prepared to pay between £8-12 million to bring Diarra to the San Siro.