Zidane's Viera hopes

Zinedine Zidane is hoping that club chairman Florentino Perez will keep to his word and bring Patrick Vieira to the Bernabeu in the summer.

According to Zidane, Vieira is the best midfielder in the world and he'd love to see his friend in the white shirt of Real Madrid.

During a chat on the internet on Sunday, Zizou said: "My area of weakness is defence. Vieira recovers 25 balls for every one that I steal."

It's not the first time that Zidane has acknowledged his French team-mate, and his dreams of playing alongside Vieira in Spain next season could come true if Florentino Perez delivers his promise of hiring the talented midfielder at the end of the season.

However Arsenal have sent a message out that Vieira will not be put on the market, despite recent claims from the player that he would like to move on if Arsenal do not start to fill their trophy room in the near future.

Real's main concern at the moment however is not the attack but their ageing defence. With skipper Fernando Hierro playing out his last days and Ivan Campo as his sole deputy, Real fans are calling for reinforcements to the back line.

The last few league outings have shown signs of wear and tear in defence, with the Merengues not able to call on keeper Iker Casillas to help them out as he has done for the past two seasons.

Zidane and Perez may want to upgrade their midfield, but first Real will have to take a look at an area with equal, if not more importance - their defence.