Tottenham confident of claiming Diarra at second time of
asking
Tottenham Hotspur will make another attempt to sign
Lassana Diarra during the summer transfer window, having missed out
in January when the France midfielder chose to leave Arsenal for
Portsmouth.
Damien Comolli, the Tottenham sporting director, is an admirer
of Diarra, and was disappointed when Arsenal made it clear they
would not sell to their north London rivals after the player had
agitated for a move.
Comolli, though, believes that he can do business with
Portsmouth, having opened a line of communication with them at the
end of January, when he oversaw the deal that took the striker
Jermain Defoe from White Hart Lane to the south coast. Diarra's
name was mentioned in those discussions.
The 23-year-old, who moved to Arsenal from Chelsea on the final
day of last summer's window, made it clear upon his arrival at
Fratton Park that Portsmouth were merely a stepping stone to
another big club. Diarra needed regular first-team football in the
countdown to Euro 2008, and had grown concerned that his peripheral
role at Arsenal could undermine his prospects of making Raymond
Domenech's France team. Diarra has been a virtual ever present for
Portsmouth.
"The people at Portsmouth know that I will not spend my life at
the club," said Diarra after completing his £5.5m move in January.
"I was able to add a clause to my contract. If I shine, if a really
big club wants me, I already know that everything will go well. I
don't want any more battles."
Tottenham have already pulled off the coup of signing Luka
Modric, the Croatia playmaker, for €21m (£16.5m) from Dinamo Zagreb
and Juande Ramos, the manager, appears intent on overhauling the
team. It remains to be seen where he will play Modric - the No10's
position is in the hole behind a lone striker, which would not
appear to fit with Ramos' preference for twin strikers - but with
Diarra on the agenda, several of the club's existing midfielders
are becoming edgy.
Tottenham may be on the move themselves, as they consider
whether to relocate to a new stadium to satisfy their craving for
increased capacity. They are exploring the possibility of building
on the Wingate Trading Estate, which is adjacent to their current
ground, as revealed by the Guardian last month. The club's other
option is to expand White Hart Lane, which holds 36,310 fans, but
the plans are complicated due to the ground being boxed in on all
sides. There is a desire for at least another 15,000 seats.
If Tottenham made the short hop to Wingate, the team could
continue to play at White Hart Lane while building took place, as
Arsenal did at Highbury while the Emirates Stadium was constructed.
Tottenham, though, would not benefit as Arsenal did by selling
their old ground to property developers for a vast amount. Land
prices are lower in N17 and the site would more likely become a
leisure park or car parking for the new stadium.
Daniel Levy, the chairman, had promised to reveal which
direction he would take by the end of next month but yesterday the
club stated "it will now not be possible to make an announcement
within that time frame". Levy said: "I am determined that we shall
work towards a successful outcome and a project of this nature and
importance cannot be hurried."
