Man U should open treasure chest to bag Ribery as Ronaldo’s replacement
By ANIMonday, June 22, 2009
LONDON - Manchester United should use as much of the 80 million pounds they received for ace striker Cristiano Ronaldo to replace him with French star Franck Ribery.
Former France and Chelsea icon Marcel Desailly, at same time insisted that Ribery was not the right man to go to Stamford Bridge.
Bayern Munich could be tempted to sell Ribery if the price is right and Desailly says that United should use as much of the 80 million pound they received for Ronaldo, as they need to prise him away from Germany.
“I would put Ribery among the top two wingers in the world. For me, it is Cristiano Ronaldo and then straight after it is Ribery. He has the same style as Ronaldo because he can dribble past you in any position,” said Desailly.
“He will be less of a show-off than Ronaldo but when you put him into a collective, then for sure he will make a difference.”
Desailly believes Ribery could command any amount of money. “Listen, we are talking about talent here and there is no price on that,” the Daily Express quoted him, as saying.
Desailly, who made 116 appearances for France and won the World Cup in 1998, was speaking at the Confederations Cup in South Africa where he is appearing as an ambassador for Castrol Index player performance analysis.
He is convinced United would get the best out of Ribery, who he believes is at the perfect stage of his career to take that extra step.
“If they buy him the guy will deliver a huge performance and will help the team. Playing at Bayern gives him potential but not like playing in one of the top three leagues in the world. Let’s give him the opportunity to show he is capable of delivering performances in the Premier League,” said Desailly.
“United need him. Scholes is getting older, Giggs is getting older. They need another player to replace Ronaldo with that special skill - the skill to be able to make the difference at any moment.
“I would put him on the left side, that is where he is best. He is right-footed and that allows him to come inside, but he can cross with his left also and play one-twos with others,” Desailly said. (ANI)
