Madrid Eye Essien To Replace Diarra
Real Madrid want to sign Michael Essien to replace Mahamadou Diarra and have already let Chelsea and the player's agent know of their interest about a possible big money move in the summer.
Predrag Mijatovic approached Peter Kenyon, when he travelled to London to watch the Blues play Fenerbahçe, about the Ghanaian international and was quoted a price of €35m.
That is €10m more than Madrid were preparing to go with, but the sale of Diarra may see the Spanish giants counter with a bid of €30m
According to reports, the former Lyon midfielder is keen to leave Stamford Bridge following the departure of José Mourinho and has been weighing up where his next move would be.
Diarra looks certain to leave Madrid as his agent agent, Frederic Guerra, revealed that after Barcelona visit the Bernabéu on May 7, the club should be willing to talk about a transfer..
"We will have to see what happens after Madrid play Barcelona," he said. "After that we will know more clearly what could happen. Diarrá is not happy at Madrid because he is not playing very much. It is a worrying situation."
Bernd Schuster is also said to have told Mijatovic that Essien would be a very welcome addition to the squad as he has never been a big fan of Diarra and wants a new defensive midfielder.