Extract from the Financial Times
By Andrew Bounds and Simeon Kerr
Published: September 3 2008
Jubilant Manchester City fans queued yesterday for match tickets and replica shirts bearing the name of Robinho, the £32.5m record signing that followed hot on the heels of news that Abu Dhabi's royal family was buying the club and giving it the financial clout to play in the premier league of Premier League clubs.
The once-neglected club would not give sales figures but said hospitality packages for Saturday's game against Chelsea sold out in 24 hours.
Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the member of Abu Dhabi's ruling family who has emerged as the buyer, gave an inkling of his interest in glitzy British assets earlier this year when he snapped up two trendy London restaurants, Hakkasan and Yauatcha, much loved by the footballers' wives-and-girlfriends set.
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