Real Madrid Has already spoken with Florentino Perez

Mariano is close to Lyon switch

Mariano Diaz is looking for a move away from the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu this summer and Lyon president Jean Michel Aulas has confirmed that he is very interested in bringing the 23-year-old to the Parc Olympique Lyonnais.

Last Friday he even phoned Florentino Perez to try to convince the Real Madrid president to let the forward move to Ligue 1, following MARCA's report last Wednesday in which Lyon were said to be leading the race for his signature.

"We are closing in on a transfer," Aulas told L'Equipe when discussing the player, for whom Lyon would pay 10 million euros to secure 60 percent of his rights.

"If we can come up with the resources to make it happen then Mariano is our priority.

"He does have other more economically appealing options.

"However, we know from [Zinedine] Zidane and [Karim] Benzema that he is a player with a lot of quality."

Aulas also insisted that he has a good relationship with Perez, which he hopes will help make a deal happen.