Busquets: I would sign Ramos for Barcelona

Mar 20, 2013 10:10:00 PM

The Blaugrana midfielder praised his Real Madrid opponent and Spain team-mate, while Javi Garcia hopes Xavi can be fit for their World Cup qualifiers against Finland and France

Barcelona midfielder Sergio Busquets has indicated that he would sign Sergio Ramos from Real Madrid, if given the opportunity.

The two defensive-minded players are included in Spain’s squad for World Cup qualifiers in the coming week against Finland and France, and Busquets thanked his Liga counterpart for saying he would like to bring the Blaugrana star to the Santiago Bernabeu.

"I am happy about this compliment and it means even more coming from someone like Sergio,” Busquets told reporters on Wednesday. “He is a great player and I would sign him too if I could."

Spain top Group I on goal difference ahead of France, and Busquets insisted that it is essential for them to win Friday night’s “decisive” clash with Finland.

"We expect a game that is not going to be easy,” the Roja star continued. “We know how they play and they are a team that have plenty of good players. We will try to take advantage and win the game as it is one of the most decisive games [in qualification].

“There are still more games that we should win, but in football anything could happen. We're here to talk about the games and for us it's all good. [Our position] is well deserved, we do not want controversy.

“We're all in the same boat and we all fight for the same national team. We are partners and we don’t differentiate whether there’s a club rivalry or not.”

Following their clash with Finland, Spain will travel to France to play what could be a deciding clash in Group I, although Busquets was keen to alleviate pressure on la Roja by hinting that the winner will not necessarily qualify top of the table.

"I don't know if it will be like a final against France, but it will certainly be a key game," he told a press conference on Wednesday.

"The team that gets the three points from that game will be very well positioned.

"We know that the game against Finland will not be easy. We have seen videos of them and they are a hard team. We hope to win so we have it all to play for against France."

Meanwhile, Manchester City defensive midfielder Javi Garcia is hoping that his Spain team-mate Xavi is passed fit to play in both March matches, as he sees the Barca cog as crucial to Vicente del Bosque’s squad.

He said: "Xavi is a very important player for the team and it's always a shame not to have him. Hopefully he recovers and can play both games."

Garcia also revealed his desire to make the most of his national squad selection to prove a point and perform if given the chance, and hopes home advantage helps against Finland.

"I want to take this opportunity and being here gives me strength, and I will fight for myself here,” the City star added.

"I think this Spanish team have arrived where we are today because they are respected by the rest of the teams.

“The three points against Finland are equal to those of France. We need to make the most of the fact we are playing in front of our own fans [on Friday]."