The sad and tragic death of Sir Bobby Robson has caused the football world to reflect on and celebrate his distinguished managerial record that saw him coach some of the biggest names in the game.

His time at PSV Eindhoven saw him take a young Ruud Van Nistelrooy from Heerenveen, but it was at Barcelona when he masterminded perhaps one of the club’s greatest signings by bringing Brazilian great Ronaldo from PSV to the Nou Camp.

It carried on the tradition of high-profile names joining Barca, with Johan Cryuff and Diego Maradona lining up in the famous claret and blue jersey in the past, while the likes of Ronaldinho, Thierry Henry and Samuel Eto’o have made their mark since Ronaldo’s spell which saw him score 47 goals in 49 games in the 1996/7 season.

And now a new chapter is about to be opened following the arrival of club-record signing Zlatan Ibrahimovic from Inter Milan. But the Swedish striker’s move raises more questions than it answers and where he will rank as one of Barcelona’s most prolific buys remains to be seen. The most obvious and glaring mystery in this transfer saga is why Barca were prepared to not only hand over £40m, but also offload Eto’o to Inter as part of the deal

Ibrahimovic has underperformed in the Champions League and in Inter’s knockout ties with Liverpool and Manchester United over the last two seasons, the Swede barely made an impact.

Infact against United he was in John O’Shea’s back pocket for most of the round and it cast further doubts on the striker’s ability to cut it on the big occasion.

Compare that to Eto’o, who, despite a frustrating season in the 2007/08 campaign, was instrumental in two European Cup victories in three seasons – scoring not only crucial goals in the knockout phase but in both finals against Arsenal and Manchester United.

The former African footballer of the year’s domestic record measures up quite favourably to that of Ibrahimovic’s as well – in five years at Barcelona he scored well over 100 goals.

That’s not to say Ibrahimovic won’t be a success for the La Liga champions. Playing alongside Lionel Messi, Thierry Henry and Andreas Iniesta will give him the chance to shine and finally make the impact in Europe that eluded him during his three-year spell at the San Siro.

But to justify the £40m that changed hands the Swede will not only have to emulate Eto’o’s achievements, but surpass them and that is no mean feat for any player.  

It’s an unfair weight to put on Ibrahimovic’s shoulders and the transfer has the hallmarks of decision making from beyond the manager’s control.

Perhaps Josep Guardiola had the final say in the transfer and firmly believes he can get the best out of the forward against quality opposition.

But there is a history of club presidents dictating transfer policy in the Spanish game and if that was the case in this instance, and if the Swede’s arrival doesn’t work out, it could spell the beginning of the end of Barca’s reign at the top of European football because the moment a manager loses autonomy is the moment the club self-destructs.