Robinho is a fraud

Ollie Irish

17th, December 2009

39 Comments

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Robinho drives me cowshit crazy. There’s no ‘I’ in team, but appropriately, there is an ‘I’ right in the middle of Robinho. All that skill and yet he wastes it like confetti – it’s an insult to his Man City team-mates and the club’s fans.

The Brazilian must be one of the most selfish players I’ve ever seen in the Premier League. If he showed a fraction of the application of lesser-talented players – James Milner or Luka Modric, for example – he’d be world-class.

But instead he’s a selfish trickster without substance, who says on one hand that he’d quite like to go to Barcelona, then suddenly claims he could stay at Eastlands for a decade. Don’t believe a word this man says. You can’t trust him on the pitch, you can’t trust him off it.

His performance last night at Spurs was shockingly unprofessional – City might as well have played with ten men. He gave absolutely no support to left-back Sylvinho, who was repeatedly shredded by Aaron Lennon. Disgraceful, frankly.

Robinho hasn’t yet been told that football is not one long Nike advert on the beach.

If he has any sense, Mark Hughes should gift-wrap the Brazilian and mail him to Barcelona for free in January, with a bow on top – for if City are to make progress as a team, they’ll be much better off without this fraud.

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39 Comments

  1. Pdxor says:

    I’m pretty glad he ended up at Citeh and not Chelsea. Just sayin’

  2. Anon92 says:

    Robinho would be world-class if hughes had the brains to use him where he belongs. As a striker!

  3. John says:

    If fraud was the charge; then you would be guilty of the journalistic version. Robinho is a forward thinking brazilian, why would we want him back to cover. We have two defensive midfielders (de jong and Barry)who should have covered sylvinho, not Robinho.

    We bought an attacking player, bit sick of this english (and yes, im english) idiocy which maintains that players are only ever any good if they are all over the pitch. doesnt matter about their skill level, its putting a shift in that counts.

    feel free to ask matt le tissier, gazza, dennis bergkamp, ian wright, gianfranco zola etc etc if they thought that there careers were failures and they are frauds because they didnt cover every blade of grass.

    No wonder we havent won anything as a nation since 1966; just a lot of overhypes athletes with too much emphasis on engine and none on style.

    Im a city fan, and im glad he came to city, no chelsea. just sayin’

  4. TSPOT says:

    I agree. He is on another level talent wise to 99% of premier league players but last night there was no effort at all.
    Sylvinho was always going to get rinsed by lennon and barry did his best to cover but robinho offered nothing but a shrug of the shoulders. brazilian tw#t

    TSPOT
    CTID

  5. […] never turned up (Robinho, take a bow), but then Tottenham didn’t allow them to. They also looked like the felt the absence of both […]

  6. olivetti says:

    may be playing like kak now but he’s gona roast England come WC.
    bad coaching really, even if he only half tries , thats still better then 70% of the EPL players

  7. CiTyBlUe says:

    Mark Hughes is to blame, although I am disappointed in Robinho right now the sole blame lay at the feet of Mark Hughes, I was not one of the Hughes out brigade until now, I just become self appointed instant president of the Hughes out Brigade.

  8. Rob says:

    What did you expect? We knew when we signed him he’d be no good at providing cover for the left back, and before Bridge got injured the team was set up for the left back to provide attacking support for the left winger, not vice versa! What we should be doing is playing 4-3-3, with two holding mids who can provide that cover for the full backs, Ireland playing in the hole, two wide strikers (Robinho, Bellamy or Tevez) and a target man.

    Trying the play 4-4-2 and match Spurs in their own back yard was a mistake! With Bellamy on the left we might have pulled it off, but don’t comdem Robinho for being played out of position. When he had the ball he looked lively and tried to attack, but was constantly hounded by 2-3 defenders whenever he had the ball, just like the rest of our players, who also failed to defend properly or provide a credible attacking threat.

    Leave Robinho alone! He’s a fantastic player and we’re lucky to have him! The team performance was what lost us the game so badly, not because because the skillfull trickster wasn’t providing cover for a below average left back who was always going to struggle against the pace of Lennon. Not to mention Onuoha or Toure had no chance of beating Crouch in the air.

  9. Ollie says:

    @ John – If Rooney and Drogba don’t mind helping out in defence (and they play up front, unlike Robinho), then Robinho should certainly help out his left-back. This isn’t the strolling Seventies, players need to perspire as well as inspire. One of the two isn’t enough.

  10. mankmanuk says:

    I’m sorry to say that he may have bundles of skill but he will never be a SWP or a craig bellamy.

    I would much prefer to put Bellers or Petrov on the left there any day of the week.

    All too often he is a waste of space on the pitch and he certainly isn’t the sort of player who can grind out a result at any time.

    He is letting the whole side down and for all of his utility player type skill he will never work for a club.

    When he gets a shot in I have to say my gran ca get more power and accuracy into it and she’s been dead for 10 years.

    Get rid of him Hughes and save us the £160,000 a week in wages for this lazy basket case.

    Com on he isn’t bringing anything to the club apart from bad press…

    All you other City fans are deluded in thinking he’s a great player for us because the fact of the matter is he isn’t!

    Look at his record for this season?

    Apps As sub Goals Yellow Red
    Total (Club) 7 (1) 0 0 0
    League 6 (1) 0 0 0
    FA Cup 0 (0) 0 0 0
    League Cup 1 (0) 0 0 0
    European/Others 0 (0) 0 0 0

  11. Vengadesh Ram Mohan says:

    And on what basis do u consider Modric to be a lesser talented individual than Moneybags Robinho then eh?!

  12. Hootie says:

    I can’t help but agree. I also think the coaching point is moot because he played the same way at Madrid under Capello. Sometimes, he pairs his enormous talent with effort, but mostly, it looks like he’s skating by on (unearned) reputation and ego. I think what highlights this is how much his form improves for Brazil when he’s actually, you know, trying.

  13. Rodney says:

    Glad to see we have people commenting who actually understand tactics and the game of football.
    I totally disagree that it is Robinho’s fault! Firstly,proper tactics is what is needed in this situation.We should not want Robinho to
    track back! His attributes are best used in attack. How did it work
    for Man Untd with Ronaldo and not working for City?Flawed argument! Hughes is not a good tactical manager that’s why!.When the game started and I saw Sylvinho on the left with Robinho I was in total disbelief! Total mismatch.Made me feel like I could be a premiership manager.He could have started by switching Tevez(workrate)and Robinho(because Robinho is not solely a left sided player).He could have used Kompany alongside Toure and use Richards on the left because he is quicker than Sylvinho.He had Zabaleta and Onuhua at his disposal as well.And if City are not to be made to look vulnerable in the center,then they need to press high and win the ball early.Not zone!Kranjcar and Palacios had too much space afforded to them because of such and fed whoever at will.And with the 2 defensive midfielders, someone should have been to have come across to help Sylvinho.
    Secondly, Robinho is Robinho and Tevez is Tevez.Both with different attributes.A very good manager recognises the difference in the 2(both very integral to City’s cause) and tries to be able to utilise them both to the benefit of the team.It’s acceptance that is what is
    needed.When we see Tevez running back and scrapping we want Robbie to be the same way.But why should he be?He is not that!Do we understand why Sir Alex has been so successful?Another coach would not have been honest enough to build the team around the best player in Ronaldo(not Rooney).And he might have been made to play as a winger for his life(which Hughes is doing with Robbie).Ronaldo was not asked to scrap and Sir Alex recognised that his attributes would have been best used going forward not defending.The team was designed to accommodate Ronaldo in this way.City needs to do the same.Hughes is so busy trying to make Robbie the scapegoat by not utilising him properly and then taking him off. BETTER MANAGER NEEDED!!

  14. John says:

    @ Ollie – none of the players i mentioned played in the 70’s.

    the perspire and inspire comment is lovely from a entymological point of view, but otherwise in my opinion is an untruth.

    Does Messi defend? Ronaldinho? Torres?

    Rooney and Drogba defend, because that is how their team is set up; as i mentioned, we have 2 defensive midfielders to screen the back 4 to allow our attacking players to do just that.

    Id also contend that far from being a fraud, Robinho is and has always shown that he is purely an attacking player, not likely to defend and should be played as such.

    You keep on with your sensationalist headlines though, one day it may get you a job in the daily mail..

  15. Ollie says:

    But Rodney, workrate is not an attribute, it should be a given – C Ronaldo actually worked VERY hard for Man Yoo, in attack and often in defence. Fergie drummed it into him. Robinho insults all of us with much less talent than him by wasting his special gifts.

  16. Ollie says:

    @ John – then don’t blame me, blame Hughes for playing him in left midfield! If City use Robinho in a Messi role (and Messi does track back, btw), fine – but to use him in front of Sylvinho, with Lennon on the right wing for Spurs, is asking for trouble. Torres is an out-and-out striker, Robinho less so.

    PS. I wouldn’t work for the Mail for any amount.

  17. John says:

    @0llie – not blaming you, taking issue with you blaming Robinho.

    “insults all of us with much less talent than him by wasting his special gifts”

    Surely, by that reckoning, it should have read…’hughes insults all of us by wasting his special gifts ‘Its up to you; take your pick,but with your scattergun approach to having a go at individuals, maybe you should reconsider the mail?

  18. whats goin' on here says:

    modric is twice the player robinho is. a few tricks don’t mean anything and robinho is just another brazilian that came to europe after everyone bought the old he is the next pele line.do you people actually think madrid would let him go if they thought he was going to be the next so called pele? hahaha what a joke, to me he is just another denilson.he is, was and always will be a waste of money.

  19. John says:

    @whats goin on here

    Thought we were having an intelligent discussion?

    Havent you got homework to do.

    Modric is a very good player, but 4 good games for spurs doesnt make him a worldbeater. he is a poor mans georgi kinkladze.

  20. whats goin' on here says:

    then robinho is just a poor mans luka modric.

  21. Tomas says:

    I disagree, robinho is one of the most talented players in the game. Just because Hughes cant play him right doesnt mean he’s any less talented does it? No. Watch robinho leave and bag goals for his new club!

  22. what's goin on here says:

    and also props for the original homework line. man that was funny, it’s amazing how you just came up with that.also don’t bother posting back because i can’t be bothered reading your bulls-h-i-t dribble.

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  24. ALAN MEADOWS says:

    I entirely agree, and you can add Adeybayor to those comments as well the way he is going. And to think I used to call Petrov saying that he made Peter Barnes look like Vinnie Jones. Now its Robinho that makes Petrov look like Vinnie Jones. Sooooooooo what do we do? clearly if they are not going to play for Hughes, then either they or Hughes must go, oh and take Sylvinho with them as he is obvisously not up to it.

  25. John says:

    @whats goin’ on.

    Bless. props. etc.

  26. william says:

    if you look at robinho on youtube hes a good playr because hes put in the position hes supost to be up front

  27. Rodney says:

    @ ollie-

    C’mon Ollie we all have televisions.We watched the games.Ronaldo pressed high in the attacking third.It was on very few occasions that he would track back deep in his half to win the ball.Are you forgetting that he was the outlet for their counter attacks?The only time he was not used for the start of the counterattacks was when Untd were defending corners(because he is good in the air)..I really think one has to assess the situation at City objectively.John has it spot on when he says-

    “We bought an attacking player, bit sick of this english (and yes, im english) idiocy which maintains that players are only ever any good if they are all over the pitch. doesnt matter about their skill level, its putting a shift in that counts.”

    One must not buy in to this common belief that football is played this way.It’s quite cultural actually.It requires one to think outside the box and see things differently if one has to have the edge and be successful.Think about it for a second.Why did Capello take the same group of players that Mc Claren had(who could not qualify for the Euros)and transform them into a team that did not lose a game in Qualifying? 1. Capello is a very good tactician and utilises players based on their specific attributes.2 Mc Claren was one dimensional and lacked any sort of tactical awarenes.He would have picked Owen(based on sentiment and on 3 years ago form). Capello on the other hand is not budging.(Sorry guys he is not going to South Africa barring a miracle).Why does Brazil continue to be world beaters(despite our thinking that we have the best league and players)?Why does Robinho play well for Brazil and is not performing for City? Tactics and understanding cultural differences friend.My point is Hughes is Welsh.He was a bustling forward in his time and therefore thinks all players should be this way.Do we hear of any Spanish teams interested in Bellamy?Yes he is quick,yes he runs and runs and chases back…but HE IS NO ROBINHO! Why then haven’t they come knocking on his door? Why?Because Robinho would be used to optimise his ability fully.That’s why!

    Take Barca for example.Last year Chelsea isolated Messi for long periods,double teamed him and gave him the odd kick here and there.What did Guardiola do in the next game(knowing that this still was his best player and he would need him)?He played him in the Center forward position causing Untd major problems(Evra had actually been psyching himself up for a battle of the midgets)but it never came and the rest is history.That my friend is proper use of tactics.Guardiola also trusts his player.Something Hughes definitely has to work on.Taking him off is only going to isolate Robinho and affect his confidence.ANOTHER COACH PLEASE??

  28. Rodney says:

    @ Ollie-

    To add to what I wrote…do you think Hughes has exhibited any tactical ingenuity thus far this season? All he has done is make one feel that Robinho can only play on the left side(and MUST compete with Bellamy and Petrov for a place).BULLOCKS!!Robinho can play as a Support Striker as well as an Attacking Midfielder in a 4-2-2-2.

    Might we forget that he was Top Scorer in the last Copa America tournament? And his 14 League goals last season?Come to think of it this might be the best Solution to City’s problems actually.

    With who City possesses now:
    I would use Toure with Kompany(strength and height)at the center of the defence

    Micah on right side Zabaleta on left side(can’t for the love of me understand how Hughes could have bought Sylvinho as back up to Bridge..matter of fact can’t understand why he bought Bridge in the 1st place)..Although in this system we would need a genuine left footer)
    with de Jong and Barry defensive and

    Ireland and Tevez as Attacking midefielders with

    Adebayor and Robbie up front.

    Would love to hear other opinions on team selection and formation…

  29. Elio says:

    There’s no I in team but there’s a U in cunt Mr.Robinho. Mwah ha ha ha ha ha.

  30. Mattzo says:

    completely agree with ollie. hughes has hung robinho out to dry for what was a tactical nightmare on wednesday. hughes hasn’t formulated a single tactical plan that is reliable or understandable this year, with the exception of the chelsea game, where our high pressing line up and constant pressure on the flanks was tailor made to stop them playing. even then we relied on drogba’s profligacy and lampards penalty miss. don’t be fooled by the arsenal league game, it was bezerk, either team could have scored 7. we are shipping goals left right and centre, and the team are at each others throats because hughes is making a mess out of things and leaving them to pick up the pieces. his tactics on wednesday were completely unsuited to the game, as soon as lennon ran at sylvinho once, the game was up and the heads went down. tottenham didn’t have to change anything to remain in complete control of the game. yet afterwards, hughes put the blame squarely on the players, despite the world and his dog being able to see he picked the wrong line-up. now watch last years unattributed stories of ‘poor mentality’ amongst the players being recycled to deflect the blame from him.

    as far as I am concerned, he is finished, goodbye… a lot of city fans agree with what I have said, but many others still have hope in him. I hope the sheik understands we are going out of our mind fighting each other constantly. His critics can’t deny what they see and what they feel in their bones… this is groundhog day, another season slipping away, another round of infighting amongst the players and fans.

  31. Skitz says:

    I would be shocked if even if he got a free to Barca if they played him, with a forward line like Henry, Ibra, Messi, he would be lucky if he could warm the bench. Also Barca like forwards who defend from the front, if he loses the ball, he just orders another latte and waits till he gets perfect service again, and if it is anything less than perfect then he will curl into a ball rocking himself to sleep saying, “its not your fault, its not your fault”.

    The biggest problem with top class brazilian players, is they get complacent when they know they are getting paid twice the rest of the clubs budget, just look at Ronaldinhio.

    I bet if they got paid 1/20 of there current wages, they would work much harder, because the focus wouldn’t be on the money, it would be on the football.

  32. CiTyBlUe says:

    F,n Selective reading arguing everyone elses comment accept mine because you know im right and agreeing is no fun aye sigh.

    Mark Hughes is the problem, Not Robinho.

  33. Nilay says:

    Im a fan of Robinho, and after watching the mid week game, my perception of him is still the same. He is definitely very very talented.
    Friends, football is a TEAM sport and blaming one or 2 people for a loss is being a little too harsh.Mancitys midweek loss to Tottenham is a result of a few collective points.
    Firstly, Mark Hughes should not have played Sylvinho to defend Lennon
    Secondly, I think De Jong and Barry could have done a better job
    Thirdly, Onuhua and Toure should have commanded the airel threat of Tottenham better.
    Also, Tottemham played a wonderful game of football, lets not discount that
    Blaming Robinho and Mark Hughes for the loss is not justified. The team of 11 players plus coach put up a bad performance. Its as simple as that.
    Coming to this article: Robinho is not a fraud, hes a player trying to find his calling. He might not have backtracked as much as expected, but that does not put his character to question. Calling him a fraud is a little childish and comes across as a reaction of a city fan whos just upset.
    @ whats goin on here – Please do not compare Modric and Robinho. I think you need to watch more football if u say hes twice the player Robinho is.

  34. Peter says:

    I AGREE WITH JOHN NEAR THE TOP HE GOT IT ABSOLUTELY RIGHT. ROBINHO DOES WORK HARD BUT OBVIOUSLY HE IS USELESS AT DEFENDING, HE IS BRAZILIAN HE HAS NEVER BEEN SHOWN PROPERLY HOW TO DEFEND JUST ATTACK ATTACK ATTACK. WE SHOULD HAVE ENOUGH DEFENSIVE PLAYERS TO BE ABLE TO LET ROBINHO PLAY HIS GAME IN THE OPPOSITION HALF. PERSONALLY, I THINK HIM AND ADE UPFRONT WOULD BE CLASS THEN TEVEZ BEHIND THEM DOING WHAT HE DOES ANYWAY, BECAUSE MOST OF THE TIME TEVEZ COMES DEEPER THAN THE MIDFIELD.

  35. Dave says:

    Robinho is heavily overrated.

    And saying something like comparing him to the lesser talented Luka Modric is laughable. But then again Modric isn’t Brazillian so he cant be as good.

  36. Ujjal says:

    Problem is Mark Hughes…hes not the right man for the Job. His tactics, player selection are not upto the mark. WIth the money power he has…ManCitys performance is poor.

    And Robinho is an exceptional talent…look at the way he performs for Brazil. But the coach need to know how to use the talent.

  37. robiiee says:

    some of guys need to realise the fact that robinho is extraordinary talent whos not used properly…and yes brazilian are best in football i think only a fool can argue…this…england….another 100yrs to reach brazil.

  38. Karl says:

    Firstly, yes Robinho like Ronaldo shouldn’t have to do too much defending. However Ronaldo combined sublime skill with a phenomenal work rate and a winners mentality. Robinho on the other hand is lazy, petulant and more often than not, a liability. You can’t blame Hughes’ tactics. The man is earning £160,000 a week. If he is picked as a full back he should be trying to earn his money and win games. Not sulking and flouncing off down the tunnel when he is substituted.

  39. edwRdO says:

    I’m curious to know if any of you guys miss Elano. I was extremely dissapoointed to see him go, and felt he was very useful for the team. Even with all the talent that came in this year I thought he would still be there. Great touch, great striker and passer of the ball, didnt miss PKs…Iknow he cant last 70+ mins, but he helped the team a lot and i loved seeing the combination of him, ireland, and petrov 2 seasons ago.
    I dont blame mark hughes, i just question his selection. We’ve all seen the kind of football he likes his teams to play: the hard nosed 4-4-2…but playing robbie as a covering left-midfielder to help stop a mercurial aaron lennon (or even a sleepy bentley) was always an ill-fated move. I understand questioning his workrate in rainy away games, but i couldnt believe hes was subbed off with 30mins to go against spurs in that miserable night. He was as involved in the game as his team allowed him to be. They couldnt carry the ball out of their own side, apart form the first 15. sorry for the rant…cheers!

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