Robinho's depressed mental state played a part in the decision to sell him to Manchester City, according to Real Madrid President Ramon Calderon.

"The boy was in a terrible way," Calderon told radio station Cadena SER late on Monday. "Robinho's problem was worse than we believed. I spoke to him several times. When he spoke of his situation, he physically cried and asked to leave Spain. He was desperate."

"It is not Real's aim to sell players. We must defend the club's interests. The reasons in this case are both humane and sporting."

City beat Chelsea to Robinho's signing by agreeing to pay Real a British-record 32.5 million pound transfer fee (US$58 million) before the end of the European transfer window on Monday.

"He wasn't bothered about going to Manchester City. His departure from Real wasn't just due to sporting reasons, there is something else, which I can't understand. You can't keep anyone against their will at the club," Calderon said.

Robinho had repeatedly spoken of his desire to join Chelsea, but City, boosted by a windfall from an imminent takeover by a United Arab Emirates business group, made a huge offer for the 24-year-old forward.

Agreeing to a four-year contract, Robinho will reportedly earn 6 million euros (US$8.7 million) a year - about three times his salary with the Spanish champion.

"This (Monday) afternoon, Chelsea hadn't said anything. Manchester made its bid at seven o'clock by fax. It was 34 million euros. And we reached 40 million euros, plus 2 million euros for objectives," Calderon said.

The El Pais newspaper said yesterday that Robinho's departure represented a defeat for Real coach Bernd Schuster and a victory for the club's sports director, Predrag Mijatovic.

Despite leaving Robinho out of the squad for Real's opening Spanish league defeat at Deportivo La Coruna on Sunday, Schuster had always wanted the forward to stay. By contrast, Mijatovic had instigated the sale, the daily said.

Criticizing the club for a lack of foresight, El Pais said the Spanish champion was now short on top players, having failed to sign Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo, Valencia's David Villa and Villarreal's Santi Cazorla.

"Robinho decided to go to a lesser club instead of staying at Real. A bad sign," it said.

Real has spent 23 million euros on two new players - Netherlands midfielder Rafael van der Vaart from Hamburg and Argentine defender Ezequiel Garay from Racing Santander, who has been loaned back to Santander this season. That is Real's lowest offseason expenditure since 1995.

(Agencies via Shanghai Daily September 3, 2008)