Manchester City, movin' on up
Tuesday, 02 September 08, 09:51 AM · Comments(0)
Take this seemingly complex, overwhelming shift in English Premier League power, and simplify it down a little bit. That’s the best way to attack the chaos that ensued yesterday.
Fact: Manchester City was just sold by Thaksin Shinawatra to the Adu Dhabi United Group for Development and Investment for a reported 210 million pounds. The Guardian
Fact: This new group, led by Sulaiman al-Fahim, now plans on making City the largest club in the Premiership. This Guardian article says al-Fahim’s wealth is supposed to be 10 times more than Chelsea benefactor Roman Abramovich, and money should be flowing into the club. The article also says that al-Fahim is claiming to be simply a “figurehead for members of the (United Arab Emirates)’s royal family, whose riches are even greater, and that the aim was to establish City among the world’s elite clubs.”
Fact: According to this ESPN Soccernet article, these new owners made last-minute bids on Dimitar Berbatov (who went to Old Trafford as expected), David Villa, Mario Gomez, and finally stole Real Madrid’s Robinho from right under the nose of Chelsea as they look to become a consistent force under Mark Hughes. Not a shabby day of bidding.
Fact: Chelsea might not be the financial powerhouse anymore, and the dynamic of the EPL has suddenly been thrown out of wack.
It’s not necessarily that the events which transpired yesterday were so complicated, but more the shock of so many drastic moves in such a short time span. Suddenly City has been changed into a certified megaclub with owners who seem ready to inject extensive amounts of money.
The first thought is that.....CHECK OUT THE LINK TO THE REST OF THIS POST.
http://www.examiner.com/x-642-Soccer-Examiner~y2008m9d2-Manchester-City-gets-its-sugar-daddy
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