Ribery may join Madrid - Bayern
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Franz Beckenbauer has admitted that he would not be surprised if Franck Ribery joined Real Madrid in the summer.
The France international is under contract at the Allianz Arena for another two seasons, but Beckenbauer accepts that Bayern will not be able to stand in Ribery's way if he wants to move to Real.
"Ribery can go to Madrid if he wants," the Bayern president told German radio station, Premiere.
"Bayern will do everything to retain his services, but while he has a contract until 2011, he can go before.
"Clubs cannot keep players against their will because the players are the ones that always end up winning that battle.
"So, if he really wants to go to Madrid, why not?"
One player who seems set to remain at Bayern is Brazilian veteran Ze Roberto who would welcome the chance to spend one more season with the club.
The 34-year-old had been linked with a move to Major League Soccer in the USA at the end of the season, but insists another year in the Bundesliga would be his preferred option.
He told Kicker: "Yes I'd like to stay. My family feel well here and we still have ambitious targets at the club."
Ze Roberto has made more than 150 appearances for Bayern in his two spells with the club.
Meanwhile, Borussia Dortmund midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng has avoided any punishment for an alleged stamp on Bayern's Miroslav Klose.
The disciplinary committee of the German Football Federation (DFB) ruled that the stamp, which also went unpunished by the referee during the game, was accidental.
Bayern officials thought it was a deliberate act, but Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp is pleased the DFB have not yielded to pressure from the Bavarian giants.
He said: "Normally nobody cares when a pundit says something, but it's different with Franz Beckenbauer.
"It's unbelievable to accuse the lad in a situation like that. The only explanation for this is that they are trying to give Kevin a bad name." |
