Pablo Zabaleta has revealed Manchester City's players have a nickname for those who were with the club before Sheikh Mansour's takeover.

Zabaleta has been a City player for five years. Signed by Mark Hughes in August 2008, he was the last one through the door before Arab riches arrived two days later.

"There is me, Vincent Kompany, Micah Richards and Joe Hart left," he told the Daily Mail. "I call us the survivors.

"So much happened at that time it was amazing. Two days after I arrived we signed Robinho.

"In the dressing room we wrote "Messi" on one of the lockers just in case. It's still empty if he wants it…"