As we head into the second leg of the last 16 Champions League tie between Manchester United and Marseille, Stephane Mbia, who plays for the Ligue 1 outfit, has signalled his intention to join their English opponents in the near future. The Cameroonian midfielder has sounded out a move to Old Trafford and will be looking to impress Sir Alex Ferguson in the return leg in the coming weeks.

Stephan Mbia told L’Equipe that "I want to go as high as possible. First I want to do well at Marseille, so my performances will one day send me to a club like Manchester United. Real Madrid are also an attractive side, but the club of my dreams is Manchester United. I feel fine at Marseille for now, but you have to have ambition."

Mbia has plenty of quality to go with that ambition. The powerful midfielder completed a £10 million plus move to Marseille back in 2009 after a five-year spell with Rennes. Standing at 6ft 2in tall, Mbia is certainly a presence in the middle of the park and unsurprisingly the defensive midfielder has drawn comparisons with Patrick Vieira and the like.

The 24-year-old has been capped by Cameroon 32 times and his style of play would appear to fit the Premier League perfectly. Manchester United are in need of some midfield reinforcements, with Owen Hargreaves’ future at the club looking uncertain, while Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs are both set to retire within the next couple of years, so a swoop for the £16 million rated man may be on the cards in the summer.

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