"I would like to have got Vieira and was genuinely keen on him," he told The Independent newsapaper.
"It was definitely a goer but is he playing at Inter Milan?"
"We are short in central midfield. We have three central midfield players. Jenas, Huddlestone and Palacios. That is not enough.
"We have left ourselves short. Tom has done well and Jenas is fit. It is the only area that scares me a bit."