Van Gaal says troubled Ribery will play

Louis van Gaal broke with his usual pre-match protocol on Friday by announcing that troubled French winger Franck Ribery will play against Borussia Moenchengladbach on Saturday.

Ribery is currently being investigated by French police after admitting he had sex with an under-age prostitute, while he received a red card in the 37th minute of Bayern’s 1-0 Champions League semi-final first leg win over Lyon on Wednesday for an ugly foul on Lisandro Lopez.

“He’s trained very well and he’ll definitely play,” said Bayern coach van Gaal. “Normally I never say this kind of thing, but Franck needs our support.”

France international Ribery will be suspended for the second leg of Bayern’s tie with Lyon on Tuesday and is also likely to be ruled out for the final, should the German side qualify.

“I give him my support, I can help him, but when it comes down to it, he can only help himself,” added van Gaal.

With three matches to play, Bayern lead the Bundesliga by two points from Schalke, who face bottom side Hertha Berlin on Saturday.