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Marseille will turn their attention to Carlos Sanchez after missing out on his Aston Villa team-mate Idrissa Gana.

The Ligue 1 side will bid £3m for the Colombian international and are confident of getting their man.

Gana was originally the midfielder they were after but Villa are not interested in selling.

And sources in France have also told the Birmingham Mail that the cash-strapped club couldn’t afford the £7m transfer fee required to meet his buy-out clause which is why Sanchez is now on the radar.

Scouts watched the 30-year-old in action at this summer’s Copa America and a formal bid is expected to be lodged in the coming days.

(Image: 2015 Aston Villa FC)

It’s likely Villa would be willing to sell as they’re already heavily-stacked in the middle of the park.

Sanchez is due to return to pre-season training at Bodymoor Heath next week but Marseille are keen on thrashing out a deal before then.

As for Gana’s future, it’s thought boss Roberto Di Matteo is keen to keep him around but the lure of a big move away might still tempt the Senegal international.