Tevez to return to Manchester City despite quarrel with Mancini

Feb 13, 2012, 19:27 GMT

Buenos Aires - Argentine star Carlos Tevez is set to return to Manchester City after a four-month absence due to a quarrel with team manager Roberto Mancini.

'My goal is to win people over again, and hopefully I can help City be the (Premier League) champions. I have decided to go back for personal reasons. It's going to be tough, but it's a challenge for me,' the striker told Fox Sports Latin America, in an interview that was broadcast Monday.

After failing to secure a transfer in the January window, Tevez is set to arrive in Manchester Tuesday, to rejoin the team that currently tops the Premier League. He hopes to be fit to play within two weeks, he said.

The 27-year-old has been out of favour at City since September and lost 9.3 million pounds (14.7 million dollars) over his dispute with the club. He was linked with Milan clubs AC and Inter as well as French side Paris St Germain, but no deal materialised.

'The fans turned against me after the Bayern (Munich match), but they were misinformed. They were told I didn't want to play and it wasn't like that,' he said.

He reportedly refused to come on as a substitute during the September 27 Champions League match against Bayern Munich. Tevez insists that he did not refuse to play, although he admits he refused to keep warming up as requested by Mancini.

'I gave everything to the club, so when I saw the pictures burning my shirt, that hurt,' he said in the interview.

'I gave a lot to leave through the back door. Now I've decided to return for personal reasons, because I did nothing wrong to the club. I return to play and score goals, and to give everything for the City shirt.'

For several months, Tevez said, he did not feel like playing at all. Now, after many weeks back home in Argentina despite daily demands from Manchester City for him to fly back to Britain, he is glad to return to the sport.

He remains unsure, however, as to his status within the team. Mancini stressed that he would not let him play for City again, but appears to have changed his mind since.

'It's very contradictory. I left the club and he went out to say that as long as he is the club coach I would not play. And now he says he wants me,' Tevez said.

The striker, who was the Premier League's top scorer only last season, noted that he had quarreled with Mancini in the past without it becoming public.

'Once we almost came to blows,' he recalled.

The difference now, according to Tevez, is the presence of in-form fellow Argentine striker Sergio Aguero.

'Last year (Mancini) depended a lot on Tevez,' the striker said, with reference to himself.

'He made a mistake to go public as he did,' he said.

'There are always quarrels, but you don't need to air them.'