City direction cast aside with £100m Kaká move

When Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite, or the unmistakable Kaká, crowned a glorious campaign with the prestigious Fifa World Player of the Year and Ballon D'Or awards in 2007, even an artist blessed with the cutting vision and devastating creative foresight of the Brazilian himself could not have envisaged the events of the past days which have captivated the football world and threatened to revolutionise the game as we know it. The fleet footed playmaker, revered by coaches and players alike, had been the subject of an incredible nine-figure bid from...Manchester City.

Of course, as we know, this does not even begin to scratch the surface of the goings on at Eastlands ever since September 1, 2008, when sensationally on transfer deadline day, the club was sold to Abu Dhabi United Group for Investment and Development, a consortium from the Middle East with plans that would have left even a certain Russian billionaire scratching his head. The City faithful could be forgiven for feelings of joy, ecstacy or just sheer disbelief, reinforced straight away with the capture of Samba star Robinho from Real Madrid for a staggering £32.5m, and the well documented bid for Dimitar Berbatov, ultimately ending in disappointment as United sealed the deal. However, this latest potential coup has the capacity to leave all previous actions floundering in the shade.

Despite all this, however outrageous it may sound, it is still very feasible to bring into question the short term intentions of Mark Hughes, Garry Cook and ADUG - simply by looking at the Premier League table. Despite the instant impact of Robinho and the consistency of a certain Stephen Ireland, City remain perilously close to the relegation zone - just two points from dropping into it - and knowing the unpredictable nature of the finest league in the world this season with just 8 points seperating the top 10, it is very plausible that they will find themselves sucked into a roller-coaster ride of a relegation battle as the season draws on. Certainly not the impact Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan had hoped to have made. It is now that City's intentions and short-term plans be questioned - is Kaká the answer to dragging a so far very average team out of a relegation battle? Certainly people would say they could not suggest better, but the Brazilian with a glittering CV is used to challenging for Champions League trophies - could he really be the answer when a City team leaking goals needs a win at the Britannia Stadium?

Another factor overlooked amidst the shock of this transfer is Mark Hughes' - or should we say the Sheikh's - other moves in this January window. Clearly the fans want another marquee name to go alongside those of Robinho and any others that will inevitably be targetted in the summer, and who better than Kaká or another mooted target, Fernando Torres? Whilst negotiating a record breaking deal for possibly the most talented player in Europe, City have also turned to that world beater...Craig Bellamy. Hmm. As well as questioning why on earth they want anything to do with the hot-headed Welsh international who failed to make an impact at Liverpool, a club that City hope to eclipse in the near future...one has to ask - what direction are the club looking to go? Who does Mark Hughes really want to sign? Are these his targets? Do the Arabs even want Hughes at the helm?

It is hard to believe that amidst the fever of potentially one of the greats arriving to ply his trade in England, so many questions still need to be raised.