Basile: Riquelme is different (11 Oct 2007 06:42 GMT)
Argentina coach Alfio Basile justified his decision to pick Juan Roman Riquelme on Wednesday despite the mercurial midfielder's lack of first-team football at Villareal.
Basile said that Riquelme, who has yet to play for the Spanish club this season, was a different player and his case was unusual.
"I like the way Roman plays, and I always have done, he's different," the gravel-voiced coach told reporters.
"He always plays good football, he has class. He's not starting behind the others because it's an atypical case.
Basile at one stage used the word indispensable to describe Riquelme but then changed his mind.
"No player is indispensable," he said. "But he's very important to the national team."
Basile built his team around Riquelme at the Copa America, where Argentina finished runners-up to Brazil.
Riquelme is unwanted at Villareal after falling out with coach Manuel Pelligrini but no other club came for him before the transfer deadline.
He spent six months on loan at Boca Juniors in the first half of this year but the Buenos Aires club were unable to agree terms with Villareal to renew the agreement.
source : Guardian Unlimited