Whilst we’ve been told to fear Manchester City’s new takeover, there seems to be a clear feeling of ‘if anyone can fuck this up, it’s City’ buzzing around Manchester. Whilst the new owners may have all the money in the World, the fact they tabled over £200 million worth of bids on the transfer deadline day suggests they don’t really know what they’re doing.

When Ronaldinho was heavily linked to the blue side of town, it amused me. The thought of City fans finally wearing their shirts with pride, the Brazilian’s name and number on the back, was pretty funny. I feel the same way about their latest signing. “We’ve got Robinho! We’ve got Robinho!” the excited blues chanted on Sky Sports News when the deal was confirmed. Maybe they’ll be a time in the future when I don’t find it funny to hear yet another superstar has signed up at City, but for now, it does make me laugh, just the thought of bloody Robinho at City!

However, the extent of the joke was exposed when the new City owner claimed he was after Fernando Torres, Cesc Fabregas and Cristiano Ronaldo were on his shopping list for January.

“Ronaldo has said he wants to play for the biggest club in the world, so we will see in January if he is serious. Real Madrid were estimating his value at $160m (£90m) but for a player like that, to actually get him, will cost a lot more; I would think $240m (£135m). But why not? We are going to be the biggest club in the world, bigger than both Real Madrid and Manchester United.”

Now some City fans, bless their hearts, actually believed there was a possibility of this happening.They were so worried, they even started a petition to keep Ronaldo out of their club! I wonder if they’ll do the same for the next United player City are reportedly lining up.

Before being given the opportunity to sign the petition, which over 500 fans have done so far, there is an introduction to explain what it’s all about.

Thaksin Shinawatra sold our beloved club to the Abu Dhabi United Group, and in one foul swoop Manchester City went from penniless laughing stock to possibly one of the biggest forces in football.

According to reports, in the January transfer window we will be testing Manchester Uniteds Resolve with a £135 million bid for Cristiano Ronaldo.

While every single city fan will be 100% behind our new owners, this is one signing WE DO NOT WANT! Yes Ronaldo is a great player, infact without doubt he is currently the best player in the world…but we feel he is not right for our club. This may be hard to understand for someone who isnt aware of our history. Manchester United are our arch rivals in the footballing world, and for the past 30 plus years it has been commonly said that we have underachieved while living in Uniteds shadow. Now we have a genuine possibility to succeed, we want it to be done off our own back, without having to take Uniteds players to do it. That isn’t to say there is a problem with all United players as that is not the case, but there is a contingent of players who should NEVER be afforded the honour of pulling on our blue shirt. Cristiano Ronaldo is one of those players. Surely if we can attract one world class player of Robinho’s stature, then we can attract others without looking at Ronaldo?

Just when you thought it couldn’t get any funnier…

Well now, the Manchester Evening News has reported that Rio Ferdinand is another United player City are keen to sign.

RIO Ferdinand is the only English player City’s new Arab owners want in their dream team. The United defender has been named by Dr Sulaiman Al Fahim who has already said he’ll be bidding £120m for Cristiano Ronaldo in the January transfer window.

The fact that Ferdinand is the most admired Englishman will send shivers down the spines of United fans. The England defender signed a new five-year contract in April on a salary believed to be £120,000 a week.

Meanwhile, Buffon has laughed off reports linking him with a £60m move to City.

So what do we reckon then? Time to say our fond farewells to Rio and Ronaldo before they leave the current English and European Champions for City? I won’t hold my breath…




------------
The RoM Manchester United 2024-25 season preview is now available. It includes articles from the country's best football writers about our expectations for the season ahead and our brightest talents, as well as proposed transfer business and which youth players to keep an eye out for. All profit goes to The Christie so please support this fantastic cause.