The Brazilian club are thinking big ahead of the 2017 campaign, and their coach is determined to bring in a household name to Vila Belmiro
In addition to Bastian Schweinsteiger, Dorival Junior has named Franck Ribery, Yaya Toure and Francesco Totti on an ambitious list of star-studded names he is interested in signing for Santos.
Dorival revealed last month that he recommended the club sign a big-name player and had suggested Manchester United outcast Schweinsteiger as a potential target.
While the finances of such a deal may be beyond Santos, the head coach hopes they can entice a player of the highest calibre to boost their international profile.
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Bayern Munich winger Ribery, Manchester City midfielder Toure, who has only recently been brought out of the wilderness by Pep Guardiola, and veteran Roma forward Totti are among those leading Dorival’s wishlist.
However, he suggested that such players would have to be willing to take a pay cut for a Santos switch to come to fruition.
“I work in reality, but I have to try and build the best team possible,” he said in an interview with Brazilian publication Lance!.
“I think of it as a marketing move, which can gain new members or a partner interested in the image of the player.
“This is the healthy side of football, wanting more and more. Then comes the board looking for a new name, a man who is down and wants to turn his career around.
“Ribery is one of these, who could be a name, and at Manchester City there is Yaya Toure. Totti is another that if he came would attract everyone’s attention.
“We are discussing some names. Sometimes the player himself is looking for a new place and is disposed to a new financial situation.”
Santos finished second in the Campeonato Brasileiro, thus securing a place in the 2017 Copa Libertadores.