Lyon land Diarra mark two

Olympique Lyonnais have signed Alou Diarra from domestic rivals RC Lens to replace Mahamadou Diarra, who left for Real Madrid CF earlier this week.

Four-year deal
The 25-year-old French international midfielder has agreed a four-year contract with the five-time Ligue 1 champions, who have paid a reported €7m for his services. The move ends a two-year spell at the Stade Félix-Bollaert for Alou Diarra, who was on the books of FC Bayern München and Liverpool FC earlier in his career without playing a first-team game. He subsequently made the breakthrough while on loan from Liverpool at Le Havre AC, SC Bastia and, initially at least, Lens. Lyon sold his namesake to Madrid for a fee of around €26m. Both Madrid and Lyon will compete in the UEFA Champions League group stage.