by Guy Debord » Sun Dec 12, 2010 10:57 pm
Daniel Taylor in The Guardian
Carlos Tevez's relationship with Manchester City was at the point of no return tonight after he revealed he had wanted to leave since the summer and said his relationship with the club's executives had "broken down and is beyond repair".
Reiterating his determination to leave Eastlands, Tevez insisted he had "no personal issue with the manager, Roberto Mancini", but made it clear he would not change his mind and that it was not a matter of money.
"My feelings have not changed and it is regrettable we have reached this situation but it is something I have felt for some time and have spent many hours thinking this through," he said. "I wanted to leave in the summer, but was convinced to return to the club. Sadly, my feelings have not changed.
"I could have signed an improved contract, offered by the club during this season; however, this decision is not about money. I have made that clear to both the board and the management on several occasions. I hugely resent the management's suggestions that I have been unduly influenced by others. I am disappointed that the management should now see fit to try to portray the situation in another light."
That was referring to a statement released by City earlier in the day, describing themselves as "disappointed by this situation and particularly the actions of Carlos's representative [Kia Joorabchian]", as well as questioning whether it was a decision based on finance rather than Tevez's distress at being separated from his family in Argentina.
"The written transfer request is in stark contrast to Carlos's stated position in both public and club contexts," the club said. "Significantly, over recent months the club have also received numerous requests from Carlos's representative to renegotiate and improve his playing contract, as well as more recently a request to extend that contract by another year.
"In line with the club's policy of not negotiating playing contracts mid-season this has not been granted. Carlos's current five-year contract has three and a half years to run and he is the highest paid player at the club."
The Tevez camp insist he is simply unhappy as a consequence of his daughters, Florencia and Katia, living in Buenos Aires now he is separated from their mother, Vanessa. Tevez, it emerged, had informed the club in August that he wanted to leave only to be talked into waiting until this point, predominantly by Joorabchian.
Since then, he has been offered a new contract that would make him comfortably the best-paid footballer in England, as well as a one-off "sweetener" in excess of £1m, but refused them both, telling associates "he no longer enjoyed going into work in the morning".
His first wish would be to move back to Argentina but, recognising that might be out of the question, he is holding out for Spain, ideally Real Madrid, where he hopes his family will follow. Failing that, he is threatening to quit football altogether. "My relationship with certain executives and individuals at the club has broken down and is now beyond repair," he said, in a thinly veiled reference directed at the chief executive, Garry Cook, and the football administrator, Brian Marwood. "I do not wish to expand on this at this stage. They know, because I have told them. Now I need to clear my head and think because this is an important part of my career."
Tevez thanked Sheikh Mansour for his "understanding and support", saying City's owner had been "very generous with what he has offered to me". But relations between player and club appear to have suffered irreparable damage, City's statement making it clear they feel badly let down. Tevez's unhappiness about his family life is accepted as genuine – "we know he hates being in Manchester", one senior figure admitted – but City's statement talked of "an unfortunate and unwelcome distraction ... in what is turning out to be a very promising season".
The club added: "Roberto and all at the club have shown, and will continue to show, sensitivity to Carlos's personal circumstances, including the issue of his family being based overseas. Indeed, following his suspension [Tevez was banned from the 3-1 win at West Ham United on Saturday] Carlos requested, and was given, special dispensation to take leave overseas."
Even this, however, has led to confusion behind the scenes. Mancini had allowed Tevez to take four days off – initially three until Tevez asked for another day – and the club had been under the assumption he would be seeing his family. Their information is that he flew to Tenerife instead.
City insiders have also accused Tevez's representatives of making "excessive" wage demands, whereas the opposite claim comes from the player's, namely that City have been offering astronomical figures that he has turned down.
Mancini, who was in Italy having a minor operation on his left eye, now faces the possibility of losing a striker who has scored 33 goals in 50 Premier League appearances for the club since joining from Manchester United last year. The manager's initial suspicion was that Tevez may already have lined up another club although, on reflection, he does not believe this is the case.
Tevez admitted last week that being in Manchester while his daughters were on the other side of the world "did hurt" but went on to say that "my quality time with them will come later".
City's publicity department had gone to great lengths to try to foster the belief that he was not agitating for a move and the revelations are a huge embarrassment only a few days after a carefully staged interview with Tevez on the club's website in which he spoke of being happily settled.
After being suspended at the weekend Tevez had been due to play in Thursday's Europa League tie against Juventus, although that is now under review, and it might be that Mancini decides the man he made captain in the summer is not in the right frame of mind.
