I did not refuse to play but I am sorry, says Carlos Tevez

1/2
Ian Gibb11 April 2012

Carlos Tevez today denied he refused to play for Manchester City against Bayern Munich in the Champions League last night.

The Argentina striker appeared to snub Roberto Mancini when the City manager attempted to bring him on as a second-half substitute in the 2-0 defeat at the Allianz Arena.

Mancini later claimed Tevez's career at the Etihad Stadium was over and revealed he would speak to club chairman Khaldoon al-Mubarak to discuss City's next move.

Tevez, who earns £250,000 a week, said after the match that he "didn't feel right to play" but released a statement this morning denying he had refused to leave the substitutes' bench.

The former Manchester United and West Ham star, who was given a police escort home on his return to Manchester this morning, said: "I would like to apologise to all Manchester City fans, with whom I have always had a strong relationship, for any misunderstanding that occurred in Munich.

"They understand that when I am on the pitch I have always given my best for the club. I had warmed up and was ready to play. This is not the right time to get into specific details as to why this did not happen. But I wish to state that I never refused to play.

"There was some confusion on the bench and my position may have been misunderstood. Going forward I am ready to play when required and to fulfil my obligations."

Sky Sports pundit Graeme Souness last night branded Tevez a "disgrace to football", while Harry Redknapp today sympathised with his City counterpart.

The Tottenham manager said: "It's just unbelievable. I felt sorry for Roberto Mancini.

"To be put in that situation wasn't fair, wasn't right. Not right for Manchester City, not right for football.

"It can't happen, it shouldn't happen. You look at that and you wonder what great City managers of the past like Joe Mercer would have thought, Malcolm Allison, all those great City people.

"Players like Summerbee, Bell - to see a player do that, refuse to come on in a Champions League game, is beyond belief.

"What would I do? I don't know what you can do now, he holds all the aces, you can say what you want, do what you want but he gets his wages every week.

"No doubt he's a great player, fantastic footballer - just a problem Man City could do without.

"What message does that send out to young players? What does it send out to kids?

"I thought the manager Mancini was fantastic after the game, the way he spoke. I felt sorry for him, he doesn't deserve that, he's a good guy.

"It wouldn't have happened at Manchester United. Tevez is a great player. He only knows one way, to chase, work, shows fantastic skill - you would have him in your team all day.

"But for whatever reason his head has gone. He made an almighty ricket last night and what he has done is wrong. You can't behave like that."

Tevez wasn't alone in causing problems for Mancini last night. Fellow striker Edin Dzeko took exception to being replaced by defensive midfielder Nigel de Jong and earned a stern rebuke from his manager.

The Italian said: "He left the field shaking his head. That is the last time that a player ever does that at this club. I am furious with his performance."

Meanwhile, Redknapp revealed Spurs midfielder Tom Huddlestone will undergo an ankle operation on Monday.

He said: "Tom needs another operation. He has already had one but there is still a problem with the ankle. It's a blow. He will be out for a while."

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in