Former Manchester City forward Robinho has claimed that it was Zlatan Ibrahimovic who convinced him to end his time at Premier league club.
Robinho was a £ 32 million transfer from Real Madrid in the summer of 2008. He was one of the big signings for the club. Even though he managed to score on his debut against Chelsea,Robinho never really got going at the Etihad stadium. He did impress in spells, but it was not enough for a team that had a huge appetite for success under the ownership of Middle East businessmen.
Robinho ended up joining AC Milan on a loan deal and the move was later converted into a permanent deal. The Brazilian has thanked Zlatan Ibrahimovic for helping him end his time at the Etihad stadium. However,Robinho did not end up staying at the Italian outfit for and he has been back and forth with Santos before eventually settling at AtléticoMineiro.
There was even a short spell in Chinese football with Guangzhou Evergrande. Once dubbed as the next Pele, Robinho will be disappointed with the way his career has progressed. Yet, he has been able to make reasonable success after winning the likes of the La Liga and the Italian Serie A. He has also made 100 appearances for the Brazilian national team while winning the Copa America.
“Milan’s former president Adriano Galliani told me that it was Zlatan who recommended they sign me. He had respect from the board, having just signed there from Barca, which was when Galliani told him there was the chance of also getting me, too.According to Galliani, Zlatan then said, ‘go and bring him, he’s a phenomenon, we’re going to work well together and score the goals the team needs,’” said Robinho. The Brazilian made 108 league appearances for Milan and scored 25 goals.
