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Rob's 'better than Ron'
Robinho has been hailed a better player than Cristiano Ronaldo, writes SCOTT PIECHA.
Ronaldo might have scored more than 40 goals last season but Manchester City striker Jo reckons his new teammate will be the one defences fear the most.
And Jo believes the £32million record signing will show his class against Portsmouth this afternoon.
The Brazilian striker said: "Robinho will be a massive hit. He is one of the best in the world in terms of going past people. For me, he is even better than Cristiano Ronaldo."
News of the World
'CITY GO FOR £30M TEVEZ'
MANCHESTER CITY are set to make a sensational attempt to snatch striker Carlos Tevez away from Manchester United.
Cash-rich City believe they can smash the relationship between Tevez and Sir Alex Ferguson — and capitalise on their neighbours’ failure to offer the Argentine striker a permanent contract before the end of the season.
As well as having the financial backing of their new owners the Abu Dhabi United Group, City can now call upon the services of Tevez’s agent, Kia Joorabchian.
Uncertainty over Tevez’s future at Old Trafford has resurfaced since Ferguson’s statement last week that they will not be offering him a permanent deal until next summer.
That has alerted City to the possibility of hijacking a player now in the final season of a two-year loan deal.
Joorbachian is in the ideal position to exploit the situation. He has emerged as an influential figure at Eastlands, having played a key role in the £32million capture of Robinho from Real Madrid, and has open access to the City boardroom.
The former car dealer is also the front man for Media Sports Investment, which effectively owns the contracts of Tevez and Liverpool’s Javier Mascherano.
Any club wanting to acquire Tevez on a permanent basis would have to splash out £30m, with the cash going to MSI.
During the summer United chief executive David Gill said they expected to complete the deal within a few months – but Fergie’s remarks indicate the player will have to wait.
That is probably because the signing of Dimitar Berbatov eventually cost United £30m — more than they had budgeted for — and has left them short of transfer funds.
And it has left the door open for City to make their own bid for Tevez, either in the January transfer window or at the end of the season.
The Observer
The prospective new owners of Manchester City will not take a 'fantasy football' approach to transfer spending and have no plans to make a much reported £135m offer for Cristiano Ronaldo. The scaling back of ambitions, according to sources involved in the takeover deal, follows an extended period of due diligence by Abu Dhabi United Group (Adug), the private investment fund of the Abu Dhabi royal family, which is finally expected to complete its purchase of the club this week.
The Manchester United winger was one of several high-profile players linked to the club last month by Dr Sulaiman Al-Fahim, frontman of the initial deal. But the property developer has since been sidelined, with sources close to the deal now distancing themselves from his talk of a lavish squad paid astronomical salaries in favour of a more sober approach to the transfer market and development of the club. 'We wouldn't even sign Ronaldo for £100m,' added the source.
Due diligence, which is finally close to completion and could take 'days or hours - it depends if people get fed up holding their position', would confirm City as the richest club in the Premier League. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, expected to be City's new chairman, is the brother of Abu Dhabi's leader, who has a family fortune of more than £555bn. That dwarfs Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich's riches of around £11bn and makes Sacha Gaydamak, owner of Portsmouth, today's visitors, seem a relative pauper, with resources of around £100m.
However, Adug is understood to see the purchase as a long-term investment and is now keen to let Mark Hughes build the club, adding established and star players only as part of a considered approach. 'There could not be a better manager in charge of the club at this point than Mark Hughes,' said one source. 'And Garry Cook [the executive chairman] is an impressive operator who has come into the Premier League for a fresh challenge and is learning very quickly.'
Part of the change of tone is understood to have been prompted by the quality of City's highly successful academy, headed by Jim Cassell. 'All the vibes from them have been very positive so far,' Cassell told Observer Sport. 'The picture is changing all the time in football - there are no guarantees, but if we work in the same way hopefully we'll continue to produce high-quality players.'
Cassell, who has briefly met Simon Pearce, the Abu Dhabi executive heading the due diligence, is optimistic about the future under the new owners. 'It's fantastic: I believe we've got great times ahead of us,' he said. 'We should now be able to do some of the things we couldn't do in the past. But we must realise that good management and structure is still needed. And if the bar has now been raised, then maybe we need to jump a little higher.'
The emphasis on youth development contrasts significantly with the approach of today's opponents. Portsmouth were granted full academy status just two summers go and Gary O'Neil is the only established Premier League player produced this century.
Paul Hart - previously a great success at Leeds in the role - is now in charge of their youth development. But it is Harry Redknapp's ability to work a deal that has built a squad good enough to win last season's FA Cup and begin their first season in Europe with a convincing 2-0 win against Vitória Guimarães on Thursday.
Much will be determined this afternoon by the performance of Lassana Diarra, as was the case at Fratton Park three days ago, when he scored the opener. 'He's magnificent, top-class,' said Peter Crouch, who should partner Jermain Defoe today. 'The manager said he could play anywhere in the world and we'd all agree with that. I see it in training every day, he's unbelievable, does some fantastic things and is probably someone who makes us tick.'
The France midfielder cost £5.5m to sign from Arsenal last January. When the first anniversary of that deal arrives there is bound to be interest and Redknapp could realistically expect to triple his outlay. If City were interested and Redknapp decided to milk the super-rich new owners for a little extra, Diarra.
The People
HUGHES ON £25M BEN-DER
Manchester City are planning a sensational £25million swoop for Lyon striker Karim Benzema.
Mark Hughes has made the hitman his number one target with the City money men ready to splash the cash again in January.
Benzema, 20, will be offered a mega four-year deal worth £100,000-a-week to join the Blues' revolution in a few months time.
PeopleSport exclusively revealed how the Frenchman almost moved to the Premier League in the summer with Manchester United but the deal fell through when Sir Alex Ferguson refused to match Lyon's asking price.
Lyon were demanding closer to £35m, but since the start of the season the club have struggled financially and now know they have to cash in on their star man.
Fergie will hate to see Benzema at his Manchester rivals, but since the signing of Dimitar Berbatov he no longer needs another front-man or has the cash available.
Hughes is in dreamland with his wish-list being drawn up around youth and flair.
Having already signed Robinho for a record fee of £32.5m, City's spending will continue in January with Franck Ribery also a target from Bayern Munich.
Ribery, 25, has previously said he has wants to play in the Premier League, but he may need some convincing to join City having been a target of Chelsea and Manchester United in the past.
City lack another front-man with Jo being the only class striker at the club and Hughes is desperate to add more to his attacking options.
Benzema has impressed not only in the French league but on the European stage, and showed he can play up front and on the wing.
The People
MEGS £10M GAMBLE
Bolton boss Gary Megson may splash £10m in the January sales on Manchester City's Gelson Fernandes and Cardiff hero Joe Ledley.
Megson fears another survival scrap unless he buys more quality players.
He failed with a £3million bid for Swiss international Fernandes last month and Cardiff will look for at least £6m for Ledley.
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