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It was the statement of intent that sent shockwaves through world football.

When Brazil star Robinho signed for Manchester City in September 2008, the Premier League - and indeed the world - knew Sheikh Mansour meant business.

It was a deal that overshadowed all else, and while it would be a transfer that made clubs sit up and take notice of City, it would be the Manchester club’s other signings that would see Premier League rivals take a club that had spent years in Manchester United’s shadow seriously.

When the transfer window reopened in January 2009 City added Nigel De Jong, Wayne Bridge, Shay Given and Craig Bellamy to their squad for a combined fee of £48m.

The following summer the chequebook emerged again, and in came Gareth Barry, Roque Santa Cruz, Emmanuel Adebayor, Kolo Toure, Joleon Lescott and Sylvinho.

All but two of those recruits were established Premier League players.

What has all this got to do with Everton?

For City circa 2008, see Everton’s 2016. Perhaps not quite on the same scale, but still, a newly rich, ambitious club. A club trying to drag themselves from Premier League obscurity in order to compete with the best.

Farhad Moshiri’s millions had Evertonians dreaming of seeing the biggest names in royal blue.

So when the Toffees signed Ashley Williams and Yannick Bolasie for a combined fee of £37m this past week, eyebrows were raised.

Williams is 31 and cost the Blues £12m. Bolasie scored just five goals last season and cost Everton more than double that, a fee that could go on to be a club record.

To some, this sort of spending is reckless, desperate even. Everton have a wad full of cash and Ronald Koeman is determined to spend it - but the Blues boss is going about it in exactly the right way.

What Manchester City got right eight years ago, and what Everton need to do now with their new-found wealth, is drag themselves up the Premier League by pilfering the established stars of their rivals.

Williams was Swansea’s iconic captain, a man who had stood by the club for eight years. Indeed, some of Swansea’s staff wept when they heard the Wales captain was to depart the Liberty. Everton paid what was needed and got the deal done.

Ditto Bolasie, a man who had helped Palace become an established Premier League club and a player who had ripped Everton apart on occasion. He was ruthlessly plucked from the Londoners. Another deal in the bag.

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The same goes for another target, Lamine Kone, who is arguably Sunderland’s best player.

All three men will help improve Everton and weaken former rivals.

When City signed Given and Bellamy in 2009, they disarmed two clubs who they had competed with for a mid-table place in the league, six months later and they did the same to rivals for the top four, Arsenal, when they signed Adebayor and Toure. They also dealt Everton a blow with the deal for Lescott, and took Villa’s iconic captain Barry.

In Chelsea left-back Bridge, they took an England international who was struggling for gametime. It was a shrewd move - and it is something Everton could repeat this summer should they follow up their interest in City goalkeeper Joe Hart.

Players like Bridge, Given and Bellamy didn’t have long-term careers at City, but they proved to be players that transitioned the club to the upper echelons of the Premier League. Titles followed when City added the likes of Yaya Toure, David Silva and Sergio Aguero to their squad later on.

It’s important Everton used Moshiri’s wealth to follow in City’s footsteps, taking the best of the rest from the Premier League in order to allow them to compete with the top six. Once that is accomplished, the Toffees can go toe-to-toe with their rivals both on and off the pitch in order to realise Moshiri and Koeman’s lofty ambitions for the club.

And that brings us back to Robinho.

In just two seasons at City, and with only 14 goals, Robinho might have not left a lasting legacy on the pitch in Manchester, but he was the signing that told the world City could compete.

Right now, Koeman is shrewdly going about improving his team, but he will eventually hope Moshiri can help him do the same at Everton. As much as the word has become a footballing cliché, he will hope that the Blues can make a ‘marquee’ signing like Robinho.

A player to get fans on the edge of their seats. A player to sell shirts. A player to make rivals sit up and take notice.

A player to show Everton can be the real deal.