Dean Smith has played down talk of offering Mahamadou Diarra a contract after the former Real Madrid midfielder played 90 minutes against Leyton Orient in a behind-closed-doors friendly.

The 35-year-old, who won four Ligue 1 titles with Lyon and two La Liga titles with the Spanish giants, has been without a club for two seasons after his release from Fulham in 2014.

He has been training with Brentford since pre-season in order to build up his fitness and has now reached the stage where he can get through 90 minutes.

No contract talks have taken place, although Smith has been impressed with the former Mali international's attitude on the pitch.

Dean Smith

He said: “The situation is as it was. He's here to get fit. He's got to a stage where he's completed 90 minutes which I didn't expect him to get to six weeks ago.

“As I said before, his experience and attitude around the place has made it pleasurable to have around here.”

Diarra has been a positive influence on the squad and Smith praised his attitude and work ethic earlier this month.

He said: “That's what has been so pleasurable about him coming here. He's always on time, he's humble and polite.

“He gets his head down and trains. He's experienced and what he tells the younger lads is invaluable.

“What I like is he demands a lot of players in training and he's helping us get the best out of them.”