Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson says he must look abroad for Roy Keane’s successor as there are no suitable players in Britain.
Ferguson’s teams have been inspired by midfielders like Keane, who joined Celtic in January, and Bryan Robson.
But Ferguson told MUTV:
“There is no-one like that in the game. There are good players but not a Keane-type. When Bryan came to the end, we looked for a new Bryan and we were lucky to get Roy. That scenario is on us again.”
Lyon’s �24m-rated midfielder Mahamadou Diarra is reported to be top of Ferguson’s wanted list, with Villarreal playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme and Aldo Duscher of Valencia also linked with moves to Old Trafford.
And Ferguson says the fact that Keane’s successor is likely to be foreign will make him an even harder act to follow.
“Even though Roy was from the Republic of Ireland, it was like he was British, so there was no problem in terms of his culture and the language,” added Ferguson. When we look abroad, we have to take into consideration that he is not going to be a Roy Keane in terms of his influence in the dressing room because of culture, language, things like that. It will be a different type of player but hopefully it will be somebody who has the qualities that we need.”
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