Marseille to lure last minute centre forward

Lausanne (AFP) – Marseille are in the hunt for an extra striker and coach Rudi Garcia said he is looking to snag a last minute bargain before the transfer window snaps shut.

Former Roma coach Garcia who won the French title with Lille in 2011 was brought in last season by ambitious new American owner Frank McCourt to help Marseille rival Monaco and PSG.

With Garcia’s clout the club have rebuilt their squad attracting in the summer transfer window France defender Adil Rami from Sevilla, striker Valere Germain from champions Monaco, Brazil midfielder Luiz Gustavo from Wolfsburg, and France goalkeeper Steve Mandanda from Crystal Palace.

But at Marseille’s pre-season base at Lausanne Garcia told AFP he was patiently tracking a target man before the transfer window closes next month.

“If we lose Valere today we will again be in the same position as last year (when they suffered a glut of injuries),” Garcia told AFP.

“We will be playing at least 55 games and you need a big squad for that,” he said.

“Ideally I’d like an advanced striker and to get one we’ll have to be patient.”

“Sometimes just before the transfer window closes you get a striker who realises he has too much competition in his own club, someone who would rather play at Marseille than watch matches from the bench,” he said.

Marseille came fifth in Ligue 1 last season but are France’s best supported team and the only French club to have won the Champions League.

They last won the French top flight under Didier Deschamps, now the French national coach, in 2010.