Shock takeover at Man City

[Elano]

MANCHESTER CITY have hit the jackpot today after being taken over by an Arabian investment group.

The Abu Dhabi United Group for Development and Investment (ABUG) have moved in at Eastlands.

A £200million deal was agreed last night between the former owner Thaksin Shinawatra and ADUG.

The new owners will be represented on the board by Hydra Properties chief executive Dr Sulaiman Al Fahim.

And he has already told boss Mark Hughes that big things are now expected in the blue half of Manchester.

Al Fahim said: “We will release details later but this is a great event for both the club and Abu Dhabi.

"Our goal is very simple – to make Manchester City the biggest club in the Premier League, and to begin with, to finish in the top four this season.

“We will adopt marketing plans that reflect positively on the club and the company from investments in all sectors of television marketing and purchasing of the star players, as well as development of infrastructure facilities at the club.”

A City statement added: “Manchester City can confirm that a Memorandum of Understanding has been signed between the Abu Dhabi United Group (ADUG) and Manchester City Football Club.

“A period of due diligence for all parties, including the FA Premier League has now been entered. A further statement will be released by the club in due course.”

City's future under former Thailand prime minister Shinawatra, who will stay on as honorary president, appeared uncertain as he struggling to stump to cash.

But Al Fahim claims the new owners will clear any of the club's debts as well as bringing in top talent.

Shinawatra had big plans for the Blues when he took over 14 months ago but his hopes have been dashed amid legal wrangling in his own country — with millions of his investments frozen.

The situation worsened further still recently when his wife Pojaman was sentenced to three years in prison on a variety of corruption charges, although she has since been released on bail.

Shinawatra himself is facing similar charges but flew to England last month on the day he was due to make a court appearance in Thailand.

He and his wife were due to return to their homeland in time to answer court in a separate property case.

Shinawatra, who has always insisted the charges are politically motivated, said that they planned to stay in England “where democracy is more important”.

[Elano]

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.

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Manchester City are set to become the world’s richest football club after an Arab royal family that are even wealthier than Roman Abramovich signed a deal to buy the Barclays Premier League club.

The ultimate owners of Manchester City are understood to be members of the ruling family of Abu Dhabi, the oil-rich Gulf state. The Al-Nahyan family’s total holdings are said to be worth at least $26 billion (about £14.4 billion) and they have sporting interests that range from horses to motor racing. “Money is no object for these people,” a source close to the deal said. “They are buying the club because they like watching Premiership football.”

The acquisition of City from Thaksin Shinawatra, the billionaire former Prime Minister of Thailand, was led by Dr Sulaiman al-Fahim, one of the best-known businessmen in the Middle East. Al-Fahim has become known as “the Gulf’s Donald Trump” after the success of his real estate company, Hydra Properties. Hydra is building a number of skyscrapers in Dubai and is also involved in the Al Reem project, a man-made island near the city of Abu Dhabi.

Al-Fahim shares another similarity with Trump because he hosts a reality television series called Hydra Executives. This follows the format of The Apprentice series, with Al-Fahim taking on the Sir Alan Sugar role.

The 31-year-old is one of the Middle East’s few “celebrity businessmen” and he is known to enjoy rubbing shoulders with Alist stars in Hollywood. Al-Fahim also has interests in football, having established an Inter Milan training academy in Dubai.

However, while the real estate magnate is probably rich enough to buy City on his own, sources close to the deal said that Al-Fahim was really a front man for the Al-Nahyan royal family. Al-Fahim arranged the deal and signed a memorandum of understanding to buy the club on Sunday night, but most of the money is being put up by a handful of sheikhs in the royal family. Among them is thought to be Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al-Nahyan, chamberlain of the royal court in Abu Dhabi.

Sheikh Mansour, whose title is minister of presidential affairs, is the half-brother of the President of United Arab Emirates and a full brother of the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi. He is, therefore, one of the most powerful men in the Gulf and, although his personal wealth is unknown, he is likely to be a multi-billionaire.

In a twist that will excite conspiracy theorists, Sheikh Mansour is married to the daughter of Sheikh Mohammed, the ruler of Dubai. Sheikh Mohammed is interested in buying Liverpool FC through the Dubai International Capital sovereign wealth fund.

The company that has bought City is called Abu Dhabi United Group for Development and Investment, a new firm set up solely for the purpose of buying the club. They are backed by the Royal Group, a private investment vehicle owned by the Al-Nahyan family that also owns Hydra Properties.

Abu Dhabi is the richest of seven emirates that make up UAE. Its wealth comes from oil and gas, and the rapid increase in the price of natural resources has made the country and its ruling family even wealthier.

Most of the state’s wealth is held in the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, worth $800 billion (about £444 billion), which buys shares in Western companies. The other main investment vehicle is called Mubadala, which has bought a 5 per cent stake in Ferrari and was instrumental in bringing Formula One to Abu Dhabi from next year. Abu Dhabi is positioning itself as a sporting and cultural hub in the Middle East and the acquisition of City will play a small role in that development.

[KURUPTION-81]

Only two weeks ago the circus at the wastelads was in full flow, rumours of city going into administration, hughes to quit. Then over night they suddenly become a mega rich club and manage to prize robinho from real 

I dont think anyone imagined this on sunday.

[Elano]

The oil-rich owners will lure the players with wage offers of up to £200,000 a week.

And fans of every other Premier League team were last night checking their fixture list to see if they play City before January.

The astonishing money-no-object approach could turn English soccer upside down as big clubs such as Arsenal and Liverpool lose their best players to City.

And the team’s supporters — some of whom turned up at their Eastlands stadium wearing Arab head-dresses yesterday — can hardly believe what is happening.

The real Mr Moneybags behind the takeover is Sheikh Munsoor bin Zayed al Nahyan, who has a 90 per cent stake in the consortium.

The 38-year-old’s boundless wealth makes Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich look like a kid with a piggy bank.

He is one of five brothers feted as the sovereign bosses of Abu Dhabi.

There are no official estimates of Sheikh Munsoor’s wealth.

But he and his brothers control the Abu Dhabi Sovereign Wealth Fund — considered the biggest in the world and valued at £460BILLION.

Mr Abramovich is worth “only” £12billion.

One ex-pat living in Abu Dhabi said: “Munsoor and his brothers are not just revered around here, they are treated like Gods.

“To talk about them in anything other than glowing, almost fawning terms is tantamount to blasphemy. Virtually everything here is owned by the family — the media, real estate businesses and property empires.”

Munsoor, university educated in America, is chairman of the UAE’s Al Jazeera football club.

But even with his huge involvement in soccer, his MAIN passion is horse racing.

He is chairman of the Emirates Racing Authority and is rumoured to own 300 thoroughbreds.

Frontman Dr Al Fahim, a 31-year-old property developer, is not short of a penny or two, either.

Nicknamed The Doc, he is also a reality TV star with a catchphrase that will chill Mark Hughes: “Impress me!”

He uses it to strike fear into contestants before setting tasks on the Arab version of The Apprentice.

A crew member said: “Hughes will find out quickly you don’t mess with The Doc. Once he has made up his mind about something, that’s it. Hughes had better deliver.”