Tottenham consider Real deal as transfer window ticks away

HARRY Redknapp has just missed out on a 'fantastic' mystery player but remains keen to bolster his Spurs squad in the final five days of the transfer window. The Tottenham boss admits that he is interested in signing his former Portsmouth...

By Ben Pearce

HARRY Redknapp has just missed out on a 'fantastic' mystery player but remains keen to bolster his Spurs squad in the final five days of the transfer window.

The Tottenham boss admits that he is interested in signing his former Portsmouth midfielder Lassana Diarra from Real Madrid, but admits that he is struggling to land his top targets before Tuesday night's deadline.

"I like Diarra, but will be a difficult one financially," said the manager. "He's on big big wages at Real Madrid and we'd find it difficult to do a deal. We haven't made an

approach. His agent has rung up and spoken to my chief scout but it hasn't gone

any further than that.

"We had a couple of targets but I can't see us getting them now - one for sure. I had a

fantastic player I think, but the club wouldn't let him go and changed their

minds. He wasn't that expensive. His manager will kill me if I say who it is."

Tottenham retain a strong interest in Sevilla's Brazilian international striker Luis Fabiano, and are also continuing to monitor Scott Parker's situation at West Ham.

Spurs' �5million offer for the midfielder was rejected last month, but Parker is yet to sign the five-year contract that has been offered by the Hammers, and Redknapp remain hopeful of landing either him or Diarra.

Redknapp admits that players will have to leave White Hart Lane before he can add to his squad. And, while he insists that Robbie Keane has a future at the club, the manager concedes that he will have to listen to offers for any of his players in the coming days.

"We would have to do some business before we can bring someone in," said Redknapp. "We've got William [Gallas], and if one or two go and we can do something then we might do it.

"For some reason when people ask about players leaving they always come back to Robbie Keane. He's a good player and he's important to us, so I'm not looking to see the back of Robbie. He's infectious around the place, he's still a great player. But you don't know.

"I think we're in a market at the moment where if people come and make good offers for players you've got to consider it, if you want to bring one or two in, so you never know who you may get an offer for."

Redknapp reports that new recruit William Gallas is training well, and Brazilian midfielder Sandro - whose move to Tottenham was agreed back in March - is finally set to arrive in north London after winning the Copa Libertadores with Internacional last week.

"He's a young player, I don't want to start talking him up too much," said Redknapp. "He's still a young player who's got to come and adjust to the Premier League. Hopefully he can come here and can get the pace of it all quickly, but you never know. We'll have to wait and see.