Marseille head coach Rudi Garcia has quashed speculation linking him with a move for Kevin Strootman and insists the club hope to keep hold of Lassana Diarra.
Strootman played under Garcia at Roma from 2013 until the coach s departure in January, a period in which the Netherlands international struggled with a long-running knee injury.
Garcia, who guided Lille to the Ligue 1 title in 2010-11, remains an admirer of the 26-year-old, but dismissed any chance of the midfielder following him to Stade Velodrome.
Strootman is a fantastic man beyond being a fantastic player, of course I would welcome him with open arms, but he will stay in Rome, he told Telefoot.
Marseille are also rumoured to be facing a battle to keep former Arsenal and Real Madrid midfielder Lassana Diarra, who has been tipped for a move away in the January transfer window.
It is logical that he wants to play for an ambitious club, Garcia said.
[But] what we want, precisely, is to fulfil that ambition here.
