City owner 'wants to buy Real Madrid'

[Rappy Veteran]

MADRID (AFP) - Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan has made inquiries about trying to buy Real Madrid, according to an unconfirmed report here Sunday.

AS said the Abu Dhabi-based billionaire would be prepared to pay one billion euros (dollars) for the Spanish giants, home to world class players like Kaka and Cristiano Ronaldo.

The Spanish sports daily did not name its source but claimed: "Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan has commissioned representatives to offer the sum (of one billion euros) to buy out the club."

AS added, however, that such a deal would be almost impossible.

Real would need the permission of their shareholding fans to change its legal statutes, which would then pave the way for any deal to go through. Fans of Real vote on the election of most of the board and the club's president.

AS added that a meeting between the Sheikh and Real president Florentino Perez could be held early in 2010. Real are reported to have debts of 327 million euros.

If the plan gathered momentum, it would inevitably start alarm bells ringing for English Premier League side Manchester City, where Italian Roberto Mancini has just taken over following the sacking of Mark Hughes.

The rules of European football's ruling body UEFA dictate that two different clubs cannot have the same owner.

Source

[Scirwode]

If he has that much pocket change, I might as well give him my bank account number. It would solve a lot of my problems :p .

Scirwode

[Subject Delta]

Modern football clubs are starting to become rich boys toys, and it isn't good for the sport.

[lt8480]

Modern football clubs are starting to become rich boys toys, and it isn't good for the sport.

Strangely though the divide between the performance of the "top" team(s) and the lower teams has never been closer. Financially they may be split. But the aggressive spending means the best players are split between more teams and so whereas in the past a couple of teams had the best 20 of 30 players in a league each team now only has at best maybe 5 of the best 50.

The smaller teams never did have a chance to buy the best players and never would win the league. Now however we have the "classic" good teams, as well as some previously lower teams contending.

If anything its "better" for the sport in terms of the games.

The only people moaning its ruining the game are probably people who used to love(and support) the teams who used to buy all the best players and win everything. I think the days of quadruples is gone.

Sorry Manchester United and others... you cannot have whoever you want any more.

[Subject Delta]

Not really, the only team on that list that wasn't already on it was Man City (and altough Chelsea where never realistic title contenders before their buyout they where still a top 5 team), all it has done in effect is to widen the gap between the top 5 or 6 clubs and the rest of the league. The rest of the teams that are improving such as Tottenham and Fulham have had to earn their success, rather than having it brought for them, so I don't have a problem with what they are achieving, my problem is with teams like Chelsea and Man City that wouldn't have stood a chance in hell of challenging for the prem if they hadn't been handed unlimited warchests.

Really though, although I am a Liverpool supporter, my problem isn't so much with us not winning, it is with the fact that to match the big spenders, a lot of clubs, mine included are coming close to financial ruin just to keep up.

[nothuman]

Sorry Manchester United and others... you cannot have whoever you want any more.

And can you tell me when exactly was that time? :huh: