Chelsea and Arsenal apparently are the latest clubs linked to Real Madrid’s Brazilian forward, with Manchester United also mentioned with regard to his future.
Wagner Ribeiro, Robinho’s agent, supposedly flew to London this week to spread the word about his client’s interest in leaving the Santiago Bernabéu. Robinho had been in talks with Real about a new contract, but the process has been very slow and could signal an exit for the unsettled 24-year-old, with Arsenal and Chelsea reportedly waiting in the wings.
Fans may agree that it would be good to see Robinho in the Premiership, but his agent is obviously drumming up interest to help his client gain a more lucrative contract. A few factors run against his agent’s claims.
Arsenal have made moves for the forward before, most recently in 2007 when the Gunners and AC Milan battled it out, only for Real to decide to hold on to the player. Should they actually make a move to bring Robinho to the Emirates stadium again, there would be stumbling blocks in the form of limited transfer funds and wage ceilings, pushing Stamford Bridge to the front of the ‘queue’, through the tenuous link of the arrival of ex-Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari.
Also, Real maintain that he will not leave, with president Roman Claderon stating:
He is not transferable. We are not going to sell Robinho.
So is Robinho making moves to switch the Premiership, or is his agent trying to make himself some money from Real?