Robinho leaves Manchester City for Santos on six-month loan deal

Robinho has joined his former club Santos on a six-month loan deal, Manchester City have confirmed. The Brazil forward, who arrived at Eastlands for a British record fee of £32.5m in September 2008, is heading back to his homeland with immediate effect. Santos, whom Robinho left for Real Madrid in 2005, will assume control of the player's contract terms, including wages and bonuses. He will travel to the club on Sunday. "Robinho is someone who needs to be playing regularly and we wish him well for the period of his loan," said Roberto Mancini, the City manager, of a player who has failed to settle in England and was at one point heavily linked with a move to Barcelona. He did end last season as the club's top scorer with 15 goals but, partly due to injury, he has struggled badly this campaign. The low point came earlier this month when, having come on as a second-half substitute, the 26-year-old was then replaced during City's 2-0 defeat at Everton. Robinho, the first signing of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al-Nahyan's ownership of City, has also left City to ensure he makes Brazil's squad for this summer's World Cup.