London, May 24 (ANI): Keeping Portuguese striker Cristiano Ronaldo at Manchester United in spite of the team's recent landmark triumphs at home and in Moscow, will be a huge challenge, Coach Alex Ferguson has said.
Ferguson, however, believes that more Champions League triumphs, like the one against Chelsea in Moscow on Wednesday, will convince Ronaldo to stay on at Old Trafford.
Ronaldo has himself said that he is in for the long haul with Manchester United, and fans can expect him to sign a new improved contract with the team, as he loves the coach, the team and the general sense of well being and bonhomie that prevails in the team and at Old Trafford.
The Sun quoted Ferguson as saying that: "He's 23 years of age, and I think that when he gets to 25, 26, he will have a big decision to make then.That will be the biggest task when he gets to that age. How big we are then, in terms of European championships, that will resonate with him and be very, very important to this club. That's why I make the point of winning European trophies - we've got to do better at that. And we have got the structure here."
United were crowned kings of Europe for the third time after their penalty shootout success (6-5) over Chelsea - the club's other glory nights came in 1968 and 1999.
Ferguson believes the set-up of his squad is perfect to go on winning the Champions League for years to come - and Ryan Giggs, 34, and Paul Scholes, 33, can still play major roles.
"I wouldn't put barriers against them continuing in the way they have done because they both conduct their lives in the right fashion, both look after themselves professionally and they don't have any weight issues. Injury-wise, Paul has had more injuries of a serious nature than Ryan, but if he stays clear of injuries then he can continue the way he is going for the next couple of years," Ferguson said.
"The satisfaction (of winning) is fantastic. When you win the European Cup it's a special occasion, you treasure these things. We have had to wait nine years to do it again which proves it's not an easy tournament to win so we have gone a long way to eradicating our record in the Champions League. It's now three and it has a far better ring to it, I must say, and hopefully we can build on that," he said.
Ferguson also admitted he thought it was all over when John Terry stepped up to take the shootout spot-kick which would have won the European Cup for Chelsea. But he missed and once Anderson put United in front, the Red Devils chief was confident the tide had turned.
Ferguson now says he believed fate would play a part on Wednesday, 50 years after the Munich air disaster, in which eight Manchester United players lost their lives.
United are still a long way behind Real Madrid who have won the European Cup on nine occasions, but Ferguson insists it is only a matter of time before the Red Devils overhaul Liverpool's domestic success.
The Old Trafford side have 17 league titles - one fewer than their Mersey rivals.
Moral bankruptcy
Sir Alex Ferguson has accused Real Madrid of moral bankruptcy over their persistent attempts to lure ace Portugese striker Cristiano Ronaldo away from Old Trafford.
"Real Madrid are not the only club interested in Ronaldo, but in terms of great clubs, Barcelona, for instance, have far better moral values than Real Madrid will ever have," he said.
"Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon and manager Bernd Schuster are masters at unsettling players. Real have no moral values," Ferguson added.
"They think they can ride roughshod over everyone but they won't do it with us. We sold them David Beckham and we sold them Ruud van Nistelrooy because we wanted to," he said.
The Daily Express quoted Ferguson as saying that Ronaldo is happy with the Manchester United and they don't want to sell him.
He said that United must remain Europe's No.1 club if they are to keep Ronaldo, who has repeated several times that it is his dream to play for Real Madrid.
Ferguson confirmed his No.2, Carlos Queiroz, who spent a year as Madrid manager, has already advised Ronaldo of the dangers of joining Real.
"Carlos is helping us. He has advised Cristiano about that kind of club and that's a big plus point for us," he said. (ANI)
