Eurosport
Manchester City forward Robinho has again been linked with a move to Chelsea after club and player gave differing accounts of his departure from a Tenerife training camp.
It’s almost as if the last six months didn’t happen. Manchester City are in mid-table and Robinho could be on his way to Stamford Bridge after falling out with the club he is contracted to.
The former Real Madrid star is set to be fined £300,000 after doing a runner and is alleged to have told compatriot Luiz Felipe Scolari he wants to join him in London.
City chairman Garry Cook’s admission he hadn’t the foggiest where Robinho was suggests the player’s relationship with his club has broken down.
While Robinho remained incommunicado for City, the Brazilian media found him swiftly enough – he claimed he was attending to a ‘family issue’ and told City he was leaving.
The whole sorry mess means Peter Kenyon may find a use for those prematurely-printed Robinho shirts after all.
The Eastlands club could also lose another important striker with Aston Villa and Tottenham joining Chelsea and Arsenal in the race to sign wonderkid Daniel Sturridge on a cheap deal.
The City academy product is frustrated at not being offered a new deal with the club seemingly more interested in wasting time chasing players who have little interest in joining them.
Another pie in which Harry Redknapp has his predictably active finger is Chelsea reserve goalkeeper Carlo Cudicini. The Italian, last seen in May 2004, is reportedly in talks with Spurs , who will allow back-up Cesar Sanchez to join Valencia on a free.
With the coffers swollen by the paperwork-dependent £14 million sale of Wilson Palacios to Spurs, Wigan boss Steve Bruce is expected to give his squad that little boost required to ensure they stay in the top half this season.
Long-term deals for strike duo Emile Heskey and Amr Zaki have been long-discussed, but Sylvan Ebanks-Blake is the latest goal-getter to be touted as a JJB target. Wolves are unlikely to want to sell as the former Manchester United trainee’s 16 goals have helped fire them to a big lead at the top of the Championship.
Wigan’s Olivier Kapo, who has struggled to break into the first team since moving from Birmingham in the summer, could return to France with Auxerre.
Moody, temperamental strikers are the order of the day for Hull City.
After Tigers boss Phil Brown reportedly tired of on-loan Marlon King‘s antics, he is prepared to turn his attentions instead to Middlesbrough‘s allegedly reformed Egyptian Mido.
Man City striker Darius Vassell is expected to leave Eastlands this month and could join Sheffield United for £1.25m, Tottenham outcast Gilberto is reported to be arranging a free transfer to Getafe after being told he has no future at the club, Brescia striker Savio Nsereko is the latest Gianluca Nani recommendation that could join West Ham, while Lyon have joined Paris St-Germain in the ‘race’ to sign Hammers wide-man Julien Faubert.
