Man City's New Owner Targets Ronaldo
Dr Sulaiman Al-Fahim Is Weighing Up a £135mil Bid
Among the numerous claims made by new owner Dr Sulaiman Al-Fahim, including Champions League prosperity and the even more ambitious "we are going to be the biggest club in the world", surely the most controversial of his claims came when he stated his desire to bring Cristiano Ronaldo, star player for rivals Manchester United, to The City of Manchester Stadium.
Abu Dhabi United Group
It has been reported that Dr Sulaiman Al-Fahim and his Abu Dhabi United Group are worth up to ten times more than Chelsea Billionaire owner Roman Abramovich.
Only hours after taking control of the club from Thai Dr Thaksin Sinawatra, Al-Fahim set about negotiating huge transfer deals for some of the biggest and most glamorous players in world football. As well as sealing the deal to bring Robinho to the blue half of Manchester, he also set about trying to entice Valencia's David Villa into a move to City and an attempt at snatching Dimitar Berbatov from under the noses of rivals Manchester United.
As well as ambitious bids for high profile players, Al-Fahim also spoke openly about his ambitions and plans for Manchester's 'second club'.
Dr Sulaiman Al-Fahim told the Guardian:
"Ronaldo has said he wants to play for the biggest club in the world, so we will see in January if he is serious," he stated.
"Real Madrid were estimating his value at $160 million (roughly £90m) but for a player like that, to actually get him, will cost a lot more; I would think $240 million (£135m). But why not? We are going to be the biggest club in the world, bigger than both Real Madrid and Manchester United."
Other bold targets for City include Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas and Liverpools's Fernando Torres. It is thought they will look to raid the two clubs for their stars in the January, however it seems unlikely that the Spanish pair will join Robinho in his decision of relenquishing Champions League football.
Robinho Criticised By Pele
While many luminous figures of world football have openly criticised Robinho on his move to Manchester City, it will surely be Robinho's idol Pele whose words had the most damning effect.
The legendary Brazilian who, like Robinho, was a Santos hero has seemingly shown outrage and almost a degree of disgust at the former Real Madrid man.
"This boy needs some serious counselling" Pele was quoted as saying on football365.com.
Other criticism has come from Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon, Santos President Marcelo Teixeira and current Santos Manager Jose Fernandos.
Potential Probe into United's Berbatov Signing
Manchester United actually agreed a medical and personal terms with Berbatov before they were granted permission from North London club Tottenham Hotspur sections of the media are reporting. While Tottenham did accept a bid from rivals Man. City, the Bulgarian was flown to Manchester airport where surprisingly he was met by United Manager Sir Alex Ferguson who 'escorted' Berbatov personally to Old Trafford.
All this came despite Tottenham agreeing a fee with United. It would therefore seem as though United had acted against the rules in the singing of Dimitar Berbatov. For a while it was looking as though Tottenham would launch a formal complaint on the matter however an agreement for United to loan striker Frazier Campbell seemed to trigger a Spurs change of heart.
It is still unclear whether United will be probed on the matter.
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