No credit crunch at City!

Man City’s mind-blowing takeover makes Sacha Gaydamak look like a pauper.

And the new multi-billionaire owners at Eastlands even dwarf Roman Abramovich’s millions.

It all puts credit-crunch stricken Pompey in the shade.

When Sacha took over from Milan Mandaric at the helm of Fratton Park, Pompey suddenly had more cash than a lot of their rivals.

But the game moves on at a lightening pace.

Suddenly, it looks like we needed Sacha’s cash simply to hold our own in the league rather than push on to the top six.

That’s the nature of the Premier League now. It’s the perfect playground for the world’s wealthiest people.

City have now taken that on to a totally new level.

The other debate raging is the role of a football manager.

Harry Redknapp, as he is quick to point out, has control other the make-up of his team.

Alan Curbishley didn’t at West Ham and Mark Hughes certainly doesn’t now.

It’s one of the major reasons Harry will not be tempted back to Upton Park, and why he eventually turned down Newcastle.

Let’s be honest, who wants Dennis Wise picking your players for you.
Newcastle are a mess and Pompey look in rude health in comparison!

Sacha has never hiden his dislike for The News - he’s never spoken to us.

But Pompey fans must be pleased he isn’t in the Fratton End on matchday in his replica kit downing pints before trying to sell Jermain Defoe behind Harry’s back.

We aren’t the richest, but we are still a proper football club.

Harry comes out fighting

Harry Redknapp’s response to the mauling at Stamford Bridge?
To come out fighting.

Our back page today has him in typical Harry mode.

Provoked and agitated by the inept display at the billionaire’s playground that is Stamford Bridge, Redknapp went on the offensive to remind everyone of his ability.

Mega-wealthy Roman Abramovich probably thinks the credit crunch is a biscuit - it’s far to say money is not too tight to mention for Luiz Felipe Scolari.

For Harry, though, the purse-strings have
been tightened. His reaction was to pore scorn on the likes of Scolari who can hand-pick his signings.

Redknapp said: ‘Any mug can go and buy loads of players for £20m or £30m.
'My missus could go and buy Kaka.
'We could all buy the best players in the world if we had an open chequebook, but it's called managing – I have to manage this football club.
'I love looking around for loans – I enjoy that side of the job and I love that part of the game. That's managing.’

Wounded by criticism of his tactics, Harry reared up on one journalist - not from The News - who had the temerity to question the choice of 4-4-2 over 4-5-1.

Harry knows he is one the best in the lower ends of the transfer market and, while he desperately wanted the money to go for Shaun Wright-Phillips and Nicky Shorey, scrapping around for loans and frees suits him.

But as our columnist, Sky Sports Ian Darke says in tomorrow’s (Wednesday) News, Pompey’s cash ran out with the shopping half done.
Peter Crouch and Younes Kaboul have arrived, but the need to balance the books has altered recruitment, hence the loan signing of Jerome Thomas from the Championship.

The revolution will have to be evolution.
Sacha Gaydamak’s pockets are not as deep as we, or Harry, had hoped.