On transfer deadline day in the summer of 2008, Manchester City hijacked Chelsea’s move for Brazilian forward Robinho, marking a pivotal moment in the club’s recent history
One signing in particular is credited with kickstarting Manchester City’s new trajectory, which has led them to lift eight Premier League titles and the Champions League. On September 1, 2008, Abu Dhabi United Group, led by Emirati royal Sheikh Mansour, changed the course of English football by completing their takeover of City.
On the very same day, the new ownership made a huge statement of intent by splashing £32.5million on Brazilian forward Robinho. The winger, already an established Real Madrid Galactico, was a hugely exciting addition, having been one of the world’s biggest talents prior to his 2005 move to the Santiago Bernabeu.
The transfer marked the start of City bringing in big names and beginning a project that would rival and overshadow Manchester United in the years to come. Seventeen years later, the Etihad club has been the standout English club of the last decade, while the disgraced Robinho serves a lengthy prison sentence.
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The 41-year-old was found guilty of rape by an Italian court in 2017. After years of appeals and attempts by the Italian court to extradite Robinho, who pleaded not guilty, he was found guilty of participating in the gang rape of a woman at a Milan nightclub in 2013.
He only began serving his nine-year sentence in Brazil in March 2024, being held in Sao Paulo’s notorious Tremembe prison complex, which has been dubbed ‘prison of the famous’ due to its other high-profile inmates.
His off-field actions have rightly overshadowed his glittering career on the pitch, 18 months of which he spent playing for City. The magnitude of his transfer to the then mid-table club is something the younger generation may not fully grasp today.
In the summer of 2008, Chelsea, no strangers to signing big names under Roman Abramovich, had been leading the chase for Robinho, who insisted he wanted to play for the London club.
However, Real stood firm in insisting they did not want to sell the 24-year-old and refused numerous Chelsea offers in the following weeks, putting an end to that deal.
But City, with new financial clout provided by their Middle Eastern owners, met the valuation placed on Robinho by the Spanish giants at the eleventh hour on transfer deadline day, breaking the British transfer record in a deal worth £32.5m.
Robinho told City’s official website at the time: « I knew that Manchester City is a very big club, there’s a great team there already and this is an exciting project.
« I liked the project, and when City made the offer to Real Madrid, I decided to come here. I liked the plans that Manchester City have and I want to succeed with them. »
He also exclusively told Mirror Football: « I could understand why questions were asked about why I joined City last season because here was a club that had not celebrated any kind of success for many years.
« It was said that I had come purely for financial reasons, that I had forgotten about my ambitions because of money. I said at the time that I signed because I had been sold a vision of Manchester City becoming a powerful club, not just in England, but throughout the rest of the world.
« Nobody was interested in listening to me a year ago but I think they will have to believe me when they see what is happening to City now. I think we are now on the brink of something very special. I want to win the championship this season. I think we can challenge for the title.
« Maybe it is still too soon and we have to have more time to develop as a team, but I do know I will be part of a team that will bring excitement to everyone. Our attacking options are the best of any team. Signing Carlos Tevez, Roque Santa Cruz and Emmanuel Adebayor means I’ll get even more opportunities to express myself because opponents will have other dangers to think about.
« Even our midfielders only know one way to play – to attack. Look at the threat we have in Shaun Wright-Phillips, Stephen Ireland and Martin Petrov. This is something very special. »
Despite not living up to expectations in the Spanish capital, the forward made a strong start to life at City, scoring 15 goals and providing nine assists in his first season under Mark Hughes. That positive early form wouldn’t last, and Robinho was allowed to depart on loan after less than 18 months on the books, before sealing a permanent transfer to AC Milan at the end of the 2009/10 season.
Spells in China, Turkey and Brazil followed, with Robinho’s last official club being boyhood team Santos in 2020. His career ended with 100 caps for Brazil, having scored 28 goals.
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