Sheikh Your Money

It’s getting increasingly difficult keeping up with events at Manchester City these days. Many Blues woke up this morning nursing sore heads after an impressive 3-0 victory had lifted the level of expectations at Eastlands, only to discover that the club were in the process of being taken over by an incredibly wealthy Arab consortium. To put it in perspective, their collective wealth makes Roman Abramovich look like Franny Lee. These are truly exciting times at City.

I keep fearing that the last year has been a prolonged twisted dream, and I’ll wake up to discover it’s still 2006 and Stuart Pearce is tracking players of the calibre of Billy Sharp and Izale McLeod. Luckily, it is true. I’ve seen it on Sky Sports News, so it must be, right? Adding to the sense of surrealism, a father and son combo were interviewed with tea towels gaffer taped to their foreheads in a bizarre Mancunian welcome to our new Arab owners. Knowing our luck, they’ll find the whole thing so distasteful that they’ll withdraw their offer.

So who exactly are our new wealthy benefactors? Going under the dubious name Abu Dhabi United, they will be represented on the board by Dr Sulaiman Al-Fahim. With Dr Thaksin Shinawatra retaining a small shareholding we’ll soon have enough doctors to open a hospital. Which is a good job really, as the levels of excitement in the blue three-quarters of Manchester are such that many people will be requiring medical assistance before the end of the day.

Media reports are suggesting that a big name signing is imminent too, with Dimitar Berbatov and Thierry Henry amongst the names being mentioned. Obviously, every silver lining is tainted by a cloud, and it is with great regret that Ecuadorian striker “Big Phil” Caicedo has left the club after a staggering return of, um, no goals in a City shirt. See ya Phil.

When Thaksin Shinawatra took over City in 2007, we were treated to a Thai-themed party in Albert Square. Hopefully we’ll get a similar Arabian night this time around.

Let the good times roll again. I need a lie down. God (sorry, Allah) only knows what developments will have occurred the next time I wake, but I'll settle for a triple swoop for Lionel Messi, Kaka and Cesc Fabregas. Nothing seems implausible any more.

Comments

[mike henderson]

City bought Robinho to use as a makeweight in their upcoming bid for Ronaldo

[dennis]

Ha ha ha hee hee hee i'm the laughing gnome and you can't catch me,moderate this weblog author what happened to free speech? Exactly, its still a risable Britain

[John Barracus]

LOL. This is a humorous article. Just fix all the typing and grammatical mistakes yo've made and it's a winner my friend.

[Tim]

Having lived in Thailand for 5 years, speak decent Thai and have a master degree in South East Asian Studies I can say i believe Thaksin has abused human rights in his home country on quite a large scale (even for that part of the world). Maybe 'football' knows something i don't!

[Mel B]

City and Luton Town supporter for 60 years. Great news and not before time something good happened to the blues. Any chance Mark might be prepared to lend a player or two to the end of the world where clubs found guilty of technical offences have massive points deductions. What penalty will be applied to ManUre for tapping up Berbatov or discussing terms without permission of Spurs?

[Mark Watson]

Members of the UAE's royal family now rent a council house in Manchester.

They should have a "right to buy" and call it the "Middle Eastlands Stadium"

[football]

Oli,what do you know about Thailand to write such a bullshit like"Corrupt Thai human rights abusers"

[seth taylor]

Calm down everyone... this is TYPICAL Arab purchasing power - they do everything BIIIG and everything LAST MINUTE! The Arabs are a race who have no concept of planning and react to fires all the time.

[Paul, bermondsey]

On the human rights thing - Mark is spot on, the rulers of the UAE do not have clean hands, even in comparison to Thaksin. Forced prostitutuion and abuse of the largely Indian/Filipino workforce is rife in the Emirates, and the Sheikhs preside (occasionally brutally) over this. Thaksin, for all his faults, violated the human rights of drug dealers and terrorists. By comparison, he's clean.

[Josh]

You think you're shocked? Imagine how us Arsenal fans felt when we read that Abou Diaby had bought your club...

[Michael Donnellan]

This has spike the Chelski machine. No longer with Roman and Peter have free reign to splurge unlimited dosh to get who they please. There is a real alternative now - Moscow cash or Middle East. It has also take a massive red (Hughes) to turn City into a real team again. As for Liverpool, I don't think Benitez will cut it. Aside from Torres his signings are poor. Roman will be furious with Kenyon for letting Robinho slip. He may be the 1st casualty of the new season which may rest on Deco performing.

[Mark]

I live in the UAE and the money that the Abu Dhabi royal family has means City can now outbid any club for any player. Whether the players will want to join is another matter.

This is a government that puts on big gigs (Timberlake, Elton John, etc) in small venues at a loss just because they want to raise the profile of the city.

When the current developments here are finished (F1 track, Saadiyat Island, Al Reem Island, etc) it is going to be one of the most spectacular places on earth and it illustrates that money really is no object for the royal family. They buy whatever they want.

However, it now means that there are TWO insanely rich clubs. Look how Chelsea utterly banjaxed the transfer fee and wage structure for Premier league teams. Now there is another club who will do the same.

And if you think they are morally better owners than the Thai, then come and see the labour camps here or consider the children who were bought as slaves to be camel jockeys (before it was stopped three years ago) or the human trafficking of prostitutes that fill up the hotel bars.

[SG]

Another sad day for English football.

How long now before English football becomes a US style 'franchise' sport?

Better watch out City fans - return fare to Abu Dhabi for your home matches - can you afford it?

[Dave]

Leaving aside whether you believe this Arab consortium to be the real deal, or the issue of the direction of English football in general...

Kudos to Frank Shinawatra... He had ambitious plans for City a year ago, and backed them with significant investment, resulting in our best ever finish in the Premiership.

Obviously, his world has been coming apart at the seams over the past few weeks, which I was convinced would be catastrophic for City. His decision to sell to a group with greater collective wealth than the ownership of any other Premiership club is as clear an indication as any of his desire to act in the club's best interests.

He may be a poor man's Pol Pot to some, but I for one say "Cheers Frank!"

PS... Anybody see Darius getting much of a game this season?

[norbert]

I look at all theses other clubs being deepen into debts by these foreign owners claiming the wanna buy all the most exciting players and such and just laugh and im really happy to be an arsenal fan.ill say arsenal is the best managed and best run premiership club,wait until 10 yrs lets c wats gonna happen wen abromiwich falls in love with basketball flies to L A and cuts a cheque for the Lakers chelsea wud b left dripping with enormous debts,or wen the glazers pack up their bags for home after making sum enormous profits MANU will plunge into crisis(ferguson will be gone then haha)all i can say is in the next 5yrs we wont probably have an premiership club owned by an english man do doubt its the best league in the WORLD at the moment cus its own by people from every single continent even iceland!!!!!!!haha wonder wen one of those corrupt african presidents wud cum over and make a bid for say eh....HULL with all the stolen oil money like our peers MAN CITY r reeping up the benefits of having to sign ROBINHO(no comments) from money we all know is not all dat clean,did he even know about man city before the told him its £150000 per week senor before he sign well more grease to ya elbows players earning big money clubs mismanagement and soon english league is gonna cum back to the old boring dayz with only home growm hard tackling guiness drinking pies eating players(R I P george best)

[United are the team for me]

Good article, except you have a typo in it. I think you meant to say "the blue three quarters of Stockport". Everyone knows that Manchester is red!

[charlie blueboy]

look,lets face it,we dont know where we'll(city) be in 1,2,3 years time.Three weeks ago i thought we was destined to be the next Leeds. Today i believe that won't happen. Im glad Dr Taksin has sold us,i was never comfotable with him in charge. If we are the biggest club in the world or not in three years time so be it, personally i'd be happy with winning a trophy,then, take it from there. It would be nice if any team can break the top four,the league needs it. I hope it's City but would be quite happy just to see one or two of the top four out of their comfort zone (and not getting the champ's league money) for a while. Spread the wealth!!

[phil didsburyblues]

COME ON YOU BLUES
cant see berba going to city ? but you never know with city

[Christian]

Doesn't it all seem a bit odd? Why would they be interested. At no point in the past can I even remember hearing about this consortium's existance, let alone an interest in Man City. I like Man City, I like Mark Hughes, I'm Welsh so I must. But buying Man City now, on deadline day, rushing through transfers for players like Berbatov, who makes Anelka seem like he's just taken a big drag on laughing gas. It'll end in tears before bed time.
Maybe they're on the up and up; and this will be the best thing that has ever happened to Man City and the Premier League. I doubt it though.
In a years time they'll be hated.

[Oli]

I am a Red not a Blue but I welcome this development. I am very against many of the foreign owers in the Premier League not because they are foreign but because they come in like vultures to rip off fans and take money out of the game. At United we have huge debts, all players purchsed have been done so with debt, and the ticket prices are flying up at ridiculous rates. The owners at Liverpool are doing the same and City's debt has been growing too.

Abramovich is not the sort of owner I'd want at United- I want stability not sink or swim based on one person's brief love affair with English football- but at least he is putting money into his club instead of ripping it off and using it as a cash cow. And it seems the new consortia at City will have the same aim. Yes they want to make money but they want to do so without buying the club without borrowed money and without threatening to take their club bust in the credit crunch.

I am anything but a City fan but these issues are more than just about one club. Scousers and City fans chanted USA when the Glazers came, only to see their own clubs soon be embroiled in turmoil. So I want to see all clubs well governed rather than see them all do a Leeds, despite supporting Manchester's other team. Corrupt Thai human rights abusers are not what we need in Englush football and the City fans who welcomed him with welcome arms should be ashamed. The new lot are far from perfect and the motivations are still dubious, not to mention that Frank is still there as a President, but overall it is a move for the better.

However, the new owner's pledge of finishing the top 4 this year and being the biggest club in the world are laughable.