"MANY people thought that Brazilian Robinho only went to Manchester City for the money. And while it is true that he is on huge wages, something like $200,000 a week, Robinho has shown not only his skill but also his leadership at City who were taken over by very rich owners this season. In fact manager Mark Hughes has not been afraid to give the Brazilian superstar the captain's armband and Robinho has deserved it. I think he is far happier at City than he was at Real Madrid ¿ he is playing all of the time and scoring some delightful goals ¿ one of which came last weekend during City's thrashing of Arsenal when running in full stride he chipped the keeper. Unfortunately he suffered an injury in that game but it is hoped he will be back for one of the best games this weekend when City are at home against their fierce rivals Manchester United.

You can seen watching City that Robinho not only is showing his skill up front but also is tracking back and it is obvious that his teammates love him. And from reports coming from England the fans have fallen head over heels with him as well especially after he took his girlfriend shopping to downtown Manchester and took the bus to get there! Not many million dollar footballers take the bus downtown! Actually a lot of people think that players are stuck up and arrogant but I can assure them that most of them are not. But it must have been a surprise for the other passengers on the bus to see Robinho get one and pay his fare.

He is also learning English which is a must ¿ and he is watching tapes of the soap opera Coronation Street to get better with the language ¿ never mind the accent! I have always said that for my money you can't beat signing players from Brazil or Argentina. They simply have it all ¿ they are world beaters. Some may have a bit of trouble adjusting to life in England considering the weather, different foods and perhaps some lonliness. But when you go to a different country you have to make the best of it and get out and meet people and take what the country has to offer. Personally I have always loved England. There is so much to do.

It is no surprise to me that Robinho has turned out like he has. I have a friend at the Brazilian club Santos where Robinho started and I remember he said to me to watch out for this kid ¿ as well as Diego who has been doing so well in Germany.

Robinho brings his game all of the time and I think that at some point in the near future he will be the best player in the world. Manchester City have a few Brazilians now ¿ Robinho, Elano and Jo and with all the money that the new Arab owners have said they are willing to invest don't be surprised to see more come to the club. Perhaps even Kaka! I would love to see him play in the Premier League and he has also expressed an interest in travelling to England at some point. Imagine Kaka linking up with Robinho, Elano and Jo. What a strike force!

Robinho is second in the scoring tables in the Premier League with eight tied with Ronaldo and Wigan's Egyptian striker Zaki while Chelsea's Nicolas Anelka leads with 12. Look for the Brazilian to get a lot more goals before the end of the season.

With City's 3-0 win over Arsenal last weekend, the Gunners are feeling some pressure ¿ especially since they stripped William Gallas of the captain's armband for speaking out about his fellow players and the club.

Personally I don't mind a captain calling out some players but obviously that is against Arsenal's rules. Gallas has not had the best of seasons and now perhaps he can just concentrate on his job at the back.

And he will definitely have to concentrate this weekend when Arsenal travel to Stamford Bridge to take on Chelsea who are so tough at home. Also I imagine the Chelsea fans will get on Gallas' back since he used to play for them so the Frenchman just has to ignore that.

Hull and Stoke keep on gaining points through hard work. Last weekend Hull came from behind twice to snatch a point against Portsmouth while Stoke beat fellow promoted side West Brom 1-0 to get all three points.

This weekend Hull travel to Stoke and I expect this match to be a full-blooded affair.

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Six of the eight groups in the Champions League have been decided before the final games and so far there are not any real surprises but I was very happy to see Atletico Madrid get through to the knockout stage along with Liverpool from Group D.

Atletico had a great season last year and they play some very good, attractive football and this week they managed to see off PSV 2-1 played in an empty stadium because of racial abuse in a past match against French side Marseille. I hope the fans have learned a lesson because no one wants to play in an empty stadium.

Manchester United and Villareal advanced from group E while Juventus and Real Madrid went through from Group H.

In Group C Barcelona and Sporting Lisbon advanced but this week Barca gave Sporting a footballing lesson beating them 5-2. They were, not surprisingly, led by Messi who went through the Portuguese team like a knife through butter. He was fantastic.

French leaders Lyon and German heavyweights Bayern Munich went through from Group F while Arsenal and Porto went through from Group G. Portugal must be happy for two teams to make it this far.

The two groups still to be decided are Groups A and B.

Roma and Chelsea led Group A and I expect they will go through since they play at home in the final match although Roma could face a tricky tie against Bordeaux while Chelsea have CFR Cluj.

In Group B Jose Mourinho and Inter Milan are under a bit of pressure as they have yet to secure a knockout spot. They are away at Werder Breman in the final match while second place Panathinaikos are at home to Anorthosis Famagusta. Mourinho was brought in to win the Champions League for Inter so we will have to see what will happen.

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KHANO

Bermuda's Khano Smith has just been picked up in the draft by new Major League Soccer side Seattle Sounders. Khano played for the New England Revolution for four years after manager Steve Nicol saw him play against the Revs on a pre-season tour to Bermuda. I wish Khano all the best. It will be a new start for him and a new challenge and I think he will like the life out in Seattle. I played at Portland many years ago and I certainly enjoyed it. It is a very nice part of the country with nice people as well. I hope Khano makes the most of it.