Voller hoping Adler will reject United
Bayer Leverkusen goalkeeper Rene Adler will spurn the chance to join Manchester United in favour of signing a new contract with the German outfit, according to the club’s general manager Rudi Voller.
Adler has formed a reputation as one of Europe’s best young keepers during a seven-year spell at the BayArena, making more than 100 appearances for the club in the process.
The 25-year-old also established himself as Germany’s first choice glovesman during the World Cup qualifying campaign for last year's showpiece, with only injury preventing him from featuring in South Africa.
However, Voller remains confident Adler will soon commit himself to extending his contract beyond 2012, when his current deal expires.
"Rene Adler has been a supporter of Manchester United since he was a child and he has a buy-out clause in his current contract just in case United come up," Voller told German website Sport1.de.
"This clause is in a region of beyond £17 million. We have the ambition to keep him at our club and we are in good talks. We have the intention to see him sign on for more seasons."
Adler is a self-confessed Manchester United fan, which has fuelled speculation that he will be the man chosen to replace Edwin van der Sar between the sticks at Old Trafford next season.
The Dutchman recently confirmed he will hang up his gloves at the end of the season, leading to mounting speculation as to who Sir Alex Ferguson will chose as his replacement.
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Adler's German team-mate Manuel Neuer of Schalke, Inter Milan's Julio Cesar, Ajax's Maarten Stekelenberg, Pepe Reina of Liverpool and Lyon's Hugo Lloris have all been linked.
By Liam Twomey
Nick Moore is a freelance journalist based on the Isle of Skye, Scotland. He wrote his first FourFourTwo feature in 2001 about Gerard Houllier's cup-treble-winning Liverpool side, and has continued to ink his witty words for the mag ever since. Nick has produced FFT's 'Ask A Silly Question' interview for 16 years, once getting Peter Crouch to confess that he dreams about being a dwarf.