01.08.2002 - Diao to sign 'In next few days'

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Salif Diao looks set to complete his transfer to Liverpool sooner than expected after Sedan, the club where he was to spend 5 months on loan, confirmed that he'll be moving to Liverpool within the next few days.

The midfielder, who signed for Liverpool immediately after Senegal's World Cup exit, will be at Anfield earlier than expected due to the current injury to Steven Gerrard.

Despite travelling with the squad to Madrid for this weekend's Real Madrid Centenary celebrations, Gerrard is not said to be 100% fit, and when the decision was taken by Gerard Houllier to allow Diao to return to Sedan until Christmas, it was always on the condition that both Hamann and Gerrard were fully fit for the start of the season.

The transfer fee for Diao is believed to be between £4m and £4.5m which will take Houllier's total summer spending to over £18million.