Scolari is livid after top target Robinho signed for City

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The Blues had been odds-on to land the Brazilian superstar after he declared his desire to leave Real Madrid sign on at Stamford Bridge. Los Merengues had accepted a £28.4million bid and the deal was all but complete when Chelsea's impatience effectively scuppered the transaction.

The London giants jumped the gun to disastrous effect when they began selling shirts emblazoned with Robinho's name through their online shop last week. That was enough to tip the Spanish champions over the edge in what was already a tense negotiation process, and the initial deal fell through.

Scolari made no secret of his admiration for Robinho and singled out the 24-year-old as the one player he hoped to sign this summer after landing Deco from Barcelona. The former Brazil coach attempted to play it cool, insisting it made no difference if he captured the ex-Santos prodigy or not, but Chelsea sources suggest otherwise. “He is too professional to make a fuss but this is a blow,” an insider told The Sun.

FUMING ... Phil Scolari

Scolari was left demanding answers from chief executive Peter Kenyon and owner Roman Abramovich.

Further fuelling Scolari's wrath is the fact Chelsea turned down the opportunity to land Robinho on deadline day. Los Blancos had accepted a bid of £32.5million from newly cashed-up City and challenged the Blues to match it - but the Premier League powerhouses were not willing to stump up the extra £4million.

Chelsea originally agreed a fee of £28.4m for Robinho and both Scolari (below) and the Blues’ chief executive officer Peter Kenyon made comments to the effect that the deal was done. But subsequent rows with Real wrecked that agreement and when news of City’s bid emerged there were late calls between Chelsea’s hierarchy on what to do.

Billionaire owner Roman Abramovich and Kenyon had agreed they would not meet Real’s asking price of £32.5m. And on Monday evening Robinho’s agent, Wagner Ribeiro, assured Chelsea that the player would not sign at Eastlands.

Real would therefore have to sell for a lower fee to Chelsea or keep hold of an unhappy star. Yet that position changed dramatically as midnight approached and Robinho was told by Real he HAD TO go to City and that he was no longer on the payroll at the Bernabeu.

Real president Ramon Calderon then made it clear that if Chelsea matched City’s bid, he would have no problem letting 24-year-old Robinho move to Stamford Bridge.

Scolari made an 11th-hour call to convince Robinho to snub a City move. But, minutes later, the player went for a British record £32.5m. A source close to Robinho, who was present when the Brazil frontman took Scolari’s call, recalled: “It was all very tense and we could sense Scolari’s frustration.

"Throughout the last few weeks Scolari was calling Robinho almost on a daily basis to reassure him that Chelsea would conclude the deal. “Robinho felt he had done everything to put pressure on Madrid to allow him to go to Chelsea. But he made it clear to Scolari that Chelsea had wasted precious time and left him with no option but to go to City.

“Robinho was afraid that, after going on all-out attack against manager Bernd Schuster on Sunday, he would spend the season watching from the stands. “He had backed himself into a corner. And Manchester City presented the perfect escape route.”

Incredibly, in the end, Robinho agreed to join City without knowing the terms of his five-year contract. Yet his agent had negotiated a £108,000-a-week deal, £10,000 a week MORE than he would have had at Chelsea. 

Hence, the Selecao star made his way to Eastlands instead in an English record transfer, while Scolari was left demanding answers from chief executive Peter Kenyon and owner Roman Abramovich.

The source added: “It’s no secret that Chelsea has paid a lot of money for players in the last few years. “Some of those players have been successful and others not so. “Felipe understands the budget has a limit but feels that he did not ask too much of the club. “He bought Deco for £8million and made it clear how important Robinho was to his plans for the season. “So he is entitled to feel let down that the club would not increase its offer by £4m to get the player.”