Ribéry dishes on being the new sparkplug at Bayern

Bayern Munich had been chasing Franck Ribéry since his star turn at the World Cup; the Bavarians finally grabbed him in July. AP

By Keir Radnedge, Special to SI.com, World Soccer

World Soccer's Keir Radnedge caught up with French winger Franck Ribéry, who is enjoying a breakout year at his new club, Bayern Munich. The 24-year-old made his $35 million move in July -- the German superclub had sought his services since his star performance at last summer's World Cup.

World Soccer: How do you feel about being proclaimed the new superstar of the Bundesliga?

Ribéry: That's not a role I want or, for that matter, that I think is due to me. I have no ambition to be the superstar. All I want now that I have settled in at Bayern is to be able to work hard, fulfill what is expected of me, enjoy my football and entertain my teammates and the fans. And I want to win titles and trophies. Then I will be happy.

World Soccer: What are Bayern's priorities this season, given that you aren't in the Champions League?

Ribéry: To win the German League. We are also in the UEFA Cup; we can go all the way to the final of that.

World Soccer: You personally have started well. How have you found your first few weeks at Bayern?

Ribéry: It was not easy to leave Marseille but I get on well with all my new teammates, and the coach, Ottmar Hitzfeld, has helped me a lot. He gives me a lot of good advice. The team spirit is excellent -- and all that helps me to do my best out on the pitch. I get on well with the coach. Mostly I talk to him with [Belgian defender] Daniel van Buyten to translate, or [French fullback] Willy Sagnol. The first time I went to the coach's office it was so he could tell me how he wanted me to play, whether I preferred the left or the right, if I could play in behind a striker. That sort of thing.

World Soccer: What did you tell him?

Ribéry: That I prefer to play on the left but if, because of injuries or whatever else, he needed me to play on the right then I would happily do so. In the League Cup against Werder Bremen, for example, I started out on the left and later I tucked in behind Miroslav Klose like an old-fashioned No 10.

World Soccer: Why did you join Bayern?

Ribéry: I felt it was the club that really, really wanted me. There were contacts with Real Madrid and with Arsenal, but after last year's World Cup, Bayern let me know in no uncertain terms that it really wanted me to go there. Even though I stayed on for another year at Marseille, [Bayern] never gave up on me. I talked it through with Sagnol and Bixente Lizarazu, who know German soccer and Bayern very well of course, and they told me how it all worked, that it was a good standard of soccer which would suit my game.

World Soccer: Were they right, from your first impressions?

Ribéry: Yes. But it's very different to French-league soccer. I found out straight away that in Germany they "play" a lot more with the arms, particularly the defenders, in obstructing forwards. But one thing I really like are the stadiums. We played a League Cup quarterfinal at a third-division stadium in Dusseldorf in front of more than 50,000 fans. How many fans can you get in a third-division stadium in France?

World Soccer: Do you like the Allianz Arena?

Ribéry: I knew the Allianz Arena already because I played there for France in the World Cup semifinals, and it's the best stadium I've seen in Germany. What I had not seen before I came here was the training center. It is already very good but Bayern is in the middle of redeveloping it -- lots of pitches, treatment rooms, medical staff. Highly professional. Nothing is left to chance, during the week or on match days.

World Soccer: There is a French-speaking "community" at Bayern. Did that influence you in your choice of club?

Ribéry: No. Of course, it's good to have Willy, Daniel and Valerien [Ismael] here but I would have come anyway and had a "proper" interpreter.

World Soccer: Did you expect to make such an instant impression with the fans?

Ribéry: I did not think about that in advance but certainly it's true that people in the city recognized me very quickly. That, for me, was a positive sign. Hopefully, I can learn enough German as soon as possible. I didn't know any of the language before I came here but I know it's very important so I've started taking lessons. Anyway, I like the city and so do my wife and daughter. It's important that the family feels at home.

World Soccer: You have a reputation for playing practical jokes on your teammates. Have you maintained this at Bayern?

Ribéry: Yes, I have always been the same, I will not change now. I cut the ends off Daniel's socks when he was in the shower. He could not understand what had happened! He is a lot taller and heavier than me but I am quicker! Anyway, I think in soccer people need a sense of humor. Everything gets taken so seriously.

World Soccer: Who was your hero?

Ribéry: Diego Maradona, for me, is the best footballer of all time. In recent times, Zinédine Zidane. He was outstanding.

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