Manchester City will not consider selling Carlos Tevez for less than £50m
Manchester City will not consider selling club captain Carlos Tévez for less than £50 million this summer and are prepared to risk keeping the Argentine international against his will should no suitable offer arrive.
City signed the player for around £32 million – though some estimates suggest the figure may reach as high as £47 million – from Manchester U*it*d two years ago and club officials believe his improved performances have almost doubled his value.
City have been preparing for the possibility that Tévez may wish to leave this summer, regardless of whether Roberto Mancini guides Manchester City into the Champions League, since the 27 year-old handed in a transfer request last December.
They may find, though, that suitors prepared to meet their valuation are thin on the ground. There are only a select number of sides capable of paying City the fee they believe they can raise as well as matching Tévez’s £160,000-a-week wages, with Inter Milan widely thought to be the most likely destination.
But while the European and Italian champions possess the funds, thanks to the largesse of owner Massimo Moratti, they would not be willing to pay £50 million for Tévez. Moratti is aware that his side require substantial investment this summer and such a large outlay on an individual would preclude that.
Neither Juventus, nor Milan are believed to be prepared to spend to that level, while it is unclear what level of funding Roma will enjoy once the takeover of Thomas DiBenedetto’s American consortium is ratified.
That would leave only Barcelona or Real Madrid as destinations on the continent, or Chelsea, who hold a long-standing interest in the player, should he decide to stay in England.
Should none of those sides match City’s asking price, though, the club are prepared to risk the wrath of Tévez and his advisers and keep the player for another year.
Mancini, whose side require just five points from their remaining four League games to secure a place in the top four, is hopeful of attracting Udinese’s Chilean international Alexis Sanchez to replace the Argentine.
The winger is being pursued by a host of European clubs – including Inter, Real and Manchester United – but Mancini and City’s football administrator, Brian Marwood, are hopeful of tying up a deal in short order should Tévez leave.
That is likely to be City’s only substantial piece of spending this summer as the club look to curtail outlay ahead of the introduction of Uefa’s Financial Fair Play regulations. The European game’s governing body will begin to shadow clubs who they believe may fall foul of regulations from this summer.
Meanwhile, Matthew Etherington has begun recovery work on his hamstring as the Stoke City medical staff try to get the winger fit to appear in the FA Cup final against Manchester City.
Etherington pulled up with the injury during Stoke’s 3-0 Premier League victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers last Tuesday, and after spending the last week resting has now started physio.
The 29 year-old will now work in the club’s swimming pool in an effort to speed up his rehabilitation. It is still said to be unlikely that he will be able to play at Wembley a week on May 14, however.
Tony Pulis, the Stoke manager, said: “It’s still a case of having to wait until the week is up. We’ve got our fingers crossed for Matty but he’s in the pool and walking so we’ll see over the next couple of days how it has settled down.”
Manchester U*it*d threatening to be party-poopers on day of FA Cup final
The Football Association is “confident” that the FA Cup final will not have its thunder stolen by the possible conclusion of the Premier League title race 20 minutes before kick-off at Wembley.
If United beat Chelsea on Sunday, taking them six points clear with two games remaining, they will need only a draw at Ewood Park on Cup final day, May 14, to guarantee a record 19th title. United kick off against Blackburn Rovers at 12.45pm, live on Sky, and could be celebrating in front of their fans as the Manchester City and Stoke City players emerge from the tunnel at Wembley 200 miles to the south for a final televised by ITV and ESPN (Chelsea face Newcastle United the next day).
The FA is having to take the potential hit on publicity having earned the lucrative right to host the Champions League final on May 28. Uefa demands that the stadium be “clean” for a fortnight before the final, meaning the FA Cup final has been dragged back into the traffic of the Premier League season.
“This situation was always a possibility when we agreed the fixture calendar with the leagues to help accommodate the Champions League final at Wembley,’’ said an FA spokesman. “Either way, we’re confident that the FA Cup final will be a fantastic occasion watched by many millions around the world.” The showpiece usually has a global reach of 155 million viewers.
But if United are going for the title at Blackburn, the build-up to the FA Cup final will inevitably be overshadowed with much of the worldwide media interest switching to Ewood.
The 2012 Community Shield will move from Wembley to an alternative non-Olympic English stadium because of the London Olympics, although the FA has yet to confirm this. Wembley is being used for the Olympic football tournament.
OTHER BOLLOX
Derby are lining up a shock move for Manchester United striker Michael Owen after manager Nigel Clough said he wanted "six or eight players, with at least one 'biggish' signing" over the summer. Metro
Manchester U*it*d's chief European scout Martin Ferguson is keeping tabs on Espanyol striker Pablo Daniel Osvaldo, who is also attracting the interest of Tottenham, Everton and Fulham. United are also watching Athletic Bilbao midfielder Javi Martinez. Daily Mail
AC Milan owner Silvio Berlusconi, who is also Italy's prime minister, has promised a summer of spending to turn the side into Champions League winners - and Tottenham winger Gareth Bale is on their hit list. Daily Mirror
Liverpool flop Alberto Aquilani's permanent move to Juventus could be off after the Italian side said they would not pay the agreed fee. Daily Mirror
Former Tottenham and West Ham striker Freddie Kanoute is to leave Spanish side Sevilla in the summer - but says he has already turned down offers to return to English football. talkSPORT
Spanish side Sevilla are interested in signing Tottenham striker Roman Pavlyuchenko. Daily Mail
Tottenham themselves are ready to offer £500,000 for Ipswich's 18-year-old forward Caolan Lavery. the Sun
Leeds forward Max Gradel is ready to turn down Newcastle and sign a new contract at Elland Road. Daily Mail
The Professional Footballers' Association Scotland player of the year Emilio Izaguirre, who has been linked with several English teams, says he has no wish to leave Celtic after his impressive debut season. Daily Express
Aston Villa's Ashley Young, who is out of contract at the end of next season, is a summer target for Real Madrid. Daily Mail
Fulham manager Mark Hughes is stepping up his interest in Young Boys of Berne striker Henri Bienvenu Ntsama. Daily Mail
Newcastle manager Alan Pardew is tracking Toulouse's £5m-rated defensive pair Cheikh M'Bengue and Franck Tabanou. the Sun
Former West Ham captain Julian Dicks says the team's relegation struggle is because players who are good enough to keep them up are not working hard enough. Daily Star
West Ham, meanwhile, are interested in replacing current boss Avram Grant with QPR manager Neil Warnock. the Sun
Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish says he wants the final say on all future transfer deals and that is believed to be the reason behind the delay in owner John W Henry giving the Scot the Anfield managerial post on a permanent basis. the Sun
Norwich manager Paul Lambert is set to be given the freedom of the city after the club's back-to-back promotions to reach the Premier League. Daily Mirror
Norwich should build a statue of celebrity cook and club director Delia Smith at Carrow Road after reaching the top flight, according to Canaries chief executive David McNally. the Sun
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