Newcastle United Football Club are said to be interested in Mahamadou Diarra.

Manchester United have in recent weeks been linked with the Mali international, as fears continue to grow over the future of Owen Hargreaves.

The England international has been bothered with knee injuries over the past couple of years, and he is set to miss the start of the new campaign.

Sir Alex Ferguson reportedly sees Diarra as a potential replacement for Hargreaves, but the Sunday Mirror claim Newcastle are set to move for the player.

The 29-year-old is out of favour at Real Madrid and Jose Mourinho will let him leave in the summer, with Sam Khedira, the Stuttgart ace, set to take his place.

Diarra cost the Spanish giants £20million when he moved from Lyon four years ago, but despite an impressive start, it appears his time at the Bernabeu is almost up.

The chance of playing UEFA Champions League football at Old Trafford would surely appeal, but it no move is made by the Reds, he could instead head to St James Park.

It remains unclear how much Chris Hughton has to spend on his squad during the summer, but the addition of Diarra would likely be his most expensive outlay.

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