Portsmouth stay silent over £4m bid for former Arsenal star midfielder Vieira

The Frenchman, now 32 and past his considerable peak, is still a strong driving force for his national side and would command wages of around £100,000 a week but any deal would have to wait until Inter's new manager Jose Mourinho has got his feet under the table at the San Siro.  

It has been reported that Mourinho plans to raid former club Chelsea for the likes of Frank Lampard and Michael Essien, which would in turn put the squeeze on midfielder Vieira but a Pompey spokesman said: "We are being linked to one big name after another and it is bound to happen but we are still not commenting." 

Pompey link: Patrick Vieira (centre) trains with fellow members of the France squad Sebastien Squillaci (left), Francois Clerc and Nicolas Anelka (right)

Pompey chief executive Peter Storrie has admitted manager Harry Redknapp wants five new signings this summer - at least three of them "top quality" to cope with the new demands of a UEFA Cup campaign and the bid for another top 10 Barclays Premier League finish.  

And despite having emphatically dismissed a report of signing Brazilian midfielder Marcelo Mattos from Panathinaikos, stories are still speculating in Greece of Pompey's bid of "over £5.9 million" for the former Corinthians star.  

His agent Pini Zahavi told the Portsmouth News: "At the moment we are considering three bids from English clubs for him, one from Portsmouth and two others. 

"But it is still possible he could stay with Panathinaikos. He likes the working conditions there and loves the fans."