Park targets European glory

South Korean star hails influence of Rooney

By Jonathan Witty   Last updated: 14th March 2010   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Park targets European glory

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Park Ji-Sung is aiming to banish the demons of last season's UEFA Champions League heartache and help Manchester United reach a record third successive final.

Park is desperate to win European football's highest honour after being left out of the squad for United's 2008 success and playing in the side that suffered a 2-0 defeat against Barcelona in the 2009 showpiece.

However, Park reckons Sir Alex Ferguson's men can reach the final again after sweeping aside AC Milan 4-0 to reach the quarter-finals.

The South Korea captain put in a man-of-the-match performance against the Italian giants and believes United are improving all the time.

"Historically, United get better as the season progresses and we have improved already," Park told the News of the World.

"Against Milan, we proved we have the team to win the Champions League this year."

"I didn't play in 2008 and won. The last thing left for me is to play and win the Champions League because I played in 2009 and we lost.

"Everyone wants to be involved in the Champions League final and 2008 was very difficult to take. Being left out was hard."

Opportunities

Park has benefitted by the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo this season and has received more opportunities in the United starting XI.

Since December, United have scored 35 goals in 14 games with the South Korean in the side, and Park admits that United always bounce back from the loss of star players.

"Historically United have always had big players, but when they want to leave the team carries on," added Park.

"They lose players, but keep winning titles. Ronaldo was a big part of our team, but we know how to recover.

"When we lose big players, as we have in the past, we remain a great team.

"When we lost Ronaldo someone will replace him. Wayne Rooney has scored a lot of goals, but we don't rely just on him.

"If he scores 40 or 50, he is scoring for the team. He can beat Ronaldo's 42 one day. Maybe he can do it this season. If not, he will do it next."