City stars on the market: All the world's a stage

Besides being the greatest international tournament there is, the World Cup is also a fantastic window for those seeking a move. The whole world is watching and even in these days of media saturation - where there are very few surprise emerging talents - a good World Cup always attracts clubs. If you can perform on the world's biggest stage, then you are deemed ready for any club football. By no means forgotten talents, City will be hoping the World Cup can add a couple of million on the price tags of two misfiring South American forwards: Robinho and Roque Santa Cruz.

Robinho has made it fairly clear he doesn't want to return to City - it is true to say some of his 'outbursts' only filter over to us in a semblance of their true form, but he has found happiness in a league that suits his flamboyant style and he reiterates that the ideal solution would be another year with Santos. The only way this can be achieved, without City making a laughable loss on the £32.4m, would be another complexly arranged loan deal.

Besides the potential complications for Santos to convince sponsors into funding a longer loan arrangement, the relative obscurity of the Brazilian league in Europe, in terms of its visibility over here, could greatly diminish Robinho's transfer value.

So, unless City hold onto any hopes of seeing Robinho in a blue shirt again, this summer is crucial to his rebirth as a world star. As Robinho is an established member of Brazil's first eleven, and Brazil are most people's second favourite, there is the potential, potential being the key word, that Robinho could really shine at this World Cup. World Soccer magazine, in their World Cup special, describe him as the "King of the step-over who will seek to dismiss claims that he is physically and mentally lightweight on the big occasion." Yet if there is anywhere he looks at home, it is in his national team - and his performances on the smaller stage of the Confederations Cup last year show he is capable of being a stand-out player for the potential world champions. City will be hoping that an explosive World Cup could go someway to recuperating his transfer fee.

Roque Santa Cruz's future is a little less clear. Hughes paid over the odds to get his man and a typically torrid season of injuries has left him on the fringes - and with rumours of Edin Dzeko arriving and Mancini's assertion that Adebayor will remain at City next season, Santa Cruz's opportunities may be limited. The difference with Santa Cruz is that he hasn't openly sought a move. Therefore, considering his lack of opportunites to impress at City, he could even use the World Cup as a springboard to come back into contention for City's starting places. I fear he has too much to do on that front though. In a group from which Paraguay have a good chance of progressing, a few goals past New Zealand on the way could help put the injury doubts out of potential buyers' minds.

If only Jo could make a surprise assault on Luis Fabiano's place in the Brazil squad.