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London - West Ham United manager Sam Allardyce said on Tuesday that he was hopeful of signing Lassana Diarra after revealing that the former Real Madrid midfielder is training with the club.
France international Diarra, 29, has been without a club since leaving Lokomotiv Moscow in August, but could be added to West Ham's squad in the coming days.
"He is training with us," Allardyce told a press conference ahead of his side's trip to Southampton on Wednesday. "I'm not so sure whether we have finalised a deal yet, but he is doing a little bit of training with us.
"The deal is very close to being finalised and on the basis of where we are with our squad and the injuries, once we have him fit he will be a very good addition based on his previous record as a footballer."
Diarra has previously played in England with Chelsea, Arsenal and Portsmouth, winning the FA Cup and League Cup with Chelsea and the FA Cup with Portsmouth. He also won the La Liga title during a three-spell with Madrid.
He has won 28 caps for France, but last represented his country in 2010.
