When Zlatan Ibrahimovic suggested he would remain at Paris Saint-Germain if they replaced the Eiffel Tower with a statue of his ponytailedness we all laughed.
Clearly this was Zlatan’s way of saying he had “done” France and was ready for the next leg of his pan-European football adventure.
The thing is, ignoring the fact that the international outcry, planning issues and impact on tourism mean it could never happen, Ibrahimovic’s current employer is one of a handful of people who could afford to erect a 1,063 foot statue of Ibrahimovic on the Champ de Mars.
The Qatar Sports Investment could fashion the icon from gold, with diamond teeth and platinum hair. Lots of platinum hair.
Headed by Nasser Al-Khelaifi, QSI is a subsidiary of the Qatar Investment Authority and worth approximately €170billion.
A country that can afford to refrigerate stadiums to host a World Cup can afford to do pretty much anything it likes, including building a PSG team that is capable of wrapping up Ligue 1 in March, with a 9-0 victory.
Four French titles since buying a majority share in the club back in 2010 has got Al-Khelaifi and Qatar a level of international exposure, but the next step is obvious.
Standing between PSG and the ultimate aim of the Champions League is Manchester City.
Or “PSG Mark I”, you could call them if you wanted to engage in a little Abu-Dhabi-versus-Doha banter.
Two years before Qatar purchased its stake in PSG, Abu Dhabi United changed the English footballing landscape by taking Manchester City off Thaksin Shinawatra’s hands for a reported £210 million.
Now valued at close to £1billion, Sheikh Mansour’s project has clearly made financial sense for the investment fund Abu Dhabi United but, like PSG, it is time to move to the level beyond two Premier Leagues titles.
At the Parc des Princes this evening we can expect a proper dust storm as two very wealthy men compete to be proclaimed king of the desert.
There have been expensive stutter steps on the road to continental domination for both projects – Robinho and Javier Pastore spring to mind – but these are two clubs building for the future.
This is just as well for City who do not look terribly well-prepared for the present. An aging, failing team engaged in a battle for the comb of fourth place with their fellow fat, bald Mancunians over in Old Trafford, it would be argued that Abu Dhabi United – worth a cool €690bn – are not getting their money’s worth.
Incoming manager Pep Guardiola may also be questioning the quality of both his squad and his own prospects if Manuel Pellegrini cannot secure Champions League football for next season, either through holding off the faltering efforts of United and West Ham in the league, or winning this season’s European Cup.
Looking at the respective line-ups and form guide the former route looks more promising than the latter for City, who would appear outgunned in their attempts to go one step beyond their best effort in Europe.
The only Premier League competitors remaining in the competition are reliant on the central defensive pairing of Eliaquim Mangala and Nicolas Otamendi, who may struggle against a striker with the class and physicality of Tour d’Eiffel menace Ibraimovic.
Fit again, record signing Kevin de Bruyne offers some hope going forward for a team who have rarely recaptured the ferocious early season form that saw Sergio Aguero (above), Raheem Sterling and David Silva tear through opponents.
All in all you would have to question the efforts of Txiki Begiristain and Ferran Soriano in constructing this expensive City XI. Their former colleague at Barcelona, Guardiola, will likely look to rip it up and start again in the summer.
How he would like to be taking over a team as balanced as PSG. Even allowing for Ibrahimovic’s departure (at the age of 34), the French champions are built on a solid defence marshalled by Brazil captain Thiago Silva, feature the wonderful Thiago Motta and Blaise Matuidi in midfield and have a resurgent Angel di Maria in attack.
It is a team that has already seen off Chelsea in this year’s Champions League.
Eighty-one league goals scored and just 18 conceded speaks volumes – even in a weak league. But that Ligue 1 stroll has allowed manager Laurent Blanc to focus all his energies on Europe.
Beaten once at home in Europe since 2006, the ball tonight in Paris is very much in PSG’s court. Their owner Al-Khelaifi, himself a former professional tennis player, would relish getting one over on his near neighbours.
For both Qatar Sports Investment and Abu Dhabi United, there is much more than bragging rights at stake.
