SUMMARY
- Robinho was unaware of Manchester City's existence.
- Robinho's move to Manchester City was almost prevented by Chelsea.
Regarded as one of the best Brazilians to have graced the English Premier League, Robinho’s start to life at Manchester City has its fair share of stories. The Brazilian joined Manchester City in 2008, back when the blue side of Manchester wasn’t much stronger compared to their city rivals.
However, upon joining the club, Robinho made a stunning revelation that has been spoken about by fans to date. Robinho, who was 31 years old, made a move to Manchester City from Real Madrid for a fee of £32.5 million ($41.13 million) at the time. By the time he was linked with a move to the Premier League, Robinho didn’t know about the existence of Manchester City.
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Robinho once made a statement where he said, “Yes, I thought I was joining Manchester United. I was misled by all involved. I wasn’t aware there was another Manchester club.”
Robinho’s stint at Manchester City only lasted two seasons. He then joined his boyhood club Santos on loan before joining AC Milan in 2010. Robinho played in 53 games for City, scoring 16 goals and providing 12 assists in the process over the course of two years.
Why didn’t Robinho sign for Chelsea?
If we make a list of top soccer signings whose fates were decided on the deadline day, Robinho’s move to Manchester City will top the list. The summer of 2008 almost saw Robinho end up landing on the Stamford Bridge. However, a last-moment bid from Manchester City changed Robinho’s flight route to the north of England.
🗣 “My main goal was to move to Chelsea, but before the deal was complete, Chelsea started selling shirts with my name on it. For Real Madrid it become a matter of pride, so they sold me to Manchester City.”
– Robinho. 🇧🇷 pic.twitter.com/VQ3j3U1hqc
— Football Tweet ⚽ (@Football__Tweet) September 10, 2018
Robinho’s intentions were clear. He wanted Chelsea. The Brazilian made a revelation, stating, “I wanted to go to Chelsea; Scolari told me that I could make a difference for him in the team.
But there’s a catch: the deal didn’t materialize. It was, in fact, Real Madrid who chose Manchester City over Chelsea. It was reported that Chelsea started selling shirts printed with Robinho’s name even before the deal was officially announced. And that didn’t go down with Real Madrid. It’s safe to say that the Blues’ reckless attitude took Robinho away to Manchester City.
Yaya Toure didn’t know about Manchester City before signing for them
Not only Robinho. The man who went on to become a club legend for Manchester City didn’t know about the club before signing for them. Toure left Barcelona to join Manchester City for a £24 million ($31 million) deal in 2010.
Toure admitted that he didn’t know about the club. In fact, it was his agent who had to make him aware of the fact that there was another club from Manchester. The former Ivory Coast star once said, “When I was at Barcelona and initially approached by Manchester City, I thought it was Manchester United that wanted me.”
“We put Manchester United in City’s shadow…that’s my greatest achievement.” 🔥👀
🗣 Yaya Toure pic.twitter.com/9Ffwm0B5rM
— PurelyFootball ℗ (@PurelyFootball) May 9, 2018
“My agent had to tell me it was the team in the blue shirts. At the time, Manchester United was putting Manchester City in the shadows. It was unbelievable. Manchester United is a big club, and I respect that club a lot,” added Toure.
However, Toure’s stint at Manchester City went on to become a successful one. And his consistent display on the pitch also made him one of the club’s legends. After spending six years in the north-west of England, Toure helped Manchester City win two Premier League titles and one FA Cup title.