Food For Thought: Emmanuel Adebayor To Manchester City - A Win-win Situation?

Emmanuel Abebayor To Man City - Who Gains And Who Loses?

Most Arsenal supporters must be heaving a huge sigh of relief at the news that Emmanuel Adebayor's transfer to Manchester City is imminent. The two clubs have agreed upon a fee and it is likely that the Togolese international striker will agree personal terms with the Citizens in due time. He would be yet another striker in Man City's bag: they have already signed Roque Santa Cruz.

Adebayor's departure to Man City won't be bad for the Arsenal fans, who have lost patience with the 25-year-old. He had one great season in the Premier League (in 2007-2008) when he scored 24 goals and looked to become one of Europe's best forwards, but last season's mediocre and inconsistent performance led many to believe that 2007-2008 was just a flash in the pan.

Surprisingly, Adebayor had been linked with a move to Italian powerhouse AC Milan in the summer but with Milan understandably not in the mood to match the player's wage demands, Man City have barged in and the striker is now on his way to the City of Manchester Stadium.

Emmanuel Adebayor might still go onto become a brilliant player at Man City but at the moment the signing smells of modesty and perhaps lack of helplessness. Manchester City are building a team to break into the top four in the Premier League next season and although the likes of Adebayor and Santa Cruz are Premier League material, signing them instead of some really world class strikers is not an ideal way to prepare for life in the Champions League, is it?

Maybe it is, if you know how to shake it a little, and shake it with a certain Carlos Tevez. The Argentine international has been confirmed to join the Man City revolution at Eastlands and the presence of a world class striker is certainly going to make Man City's bid to become an elite club of English football more credible.

Along with Gareth Barry, Tevez has been the buy of the summer for Mark Hughes and his proven quality in the Premier League is certainly going to enhance City's chances of breaking the quartet-o-poly in the English top flight.

Real Madrid Are Great But Not Invincible

Barcelona are a team, Real Madrid are not yet, argued this columnist in one of his recent columns and Brazilian great Kaka sees the point too. The €67.2 million man admitted on Monday that big name signings do not automatically translate into success and that a lot needs to be done before success can be achieved. Along with fellow Liga giants FC Barcelona, Real Madrid now have the biggest names in the world after completing the signings of Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka and Karim Benzema (as well as Raul Albiol) this summer but as of now they are not a team, only an assembly of star players.

Having said that, you don't necessarily win the Spanish Primera Division or the Champions League with your third rate players, do you? Building a team involves assembling the best available players in the initial stages and now that Madrid have signed some of the biggest names in world football and have strengthened the areas that they needed to, it is now time to mould these players into a team.

Big name signings do not necessarily guarantee success but they do provide you with a chance to achieve success. Madrid might still not be a team but in due time they will be under the tutelage of Manuel Pellegrini. Whether or not this new-look Madrid side can surpass the already teamed-up Barcelona side remains to be seen.

Subhankar Mondal