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Carlos Tevez stunned the footballing world when he left Manchester United to join their bitter rivals Manchester City, and has already explained his reasoning behind the stunning decision
Carlos Tevez claimed it was Manchester United's lack of respect towards him that drove him to sign for Manchester City.
The Argentine is one of just 14 players to represent both clubs and part of an even more exclusive group of those who earned significant success on both sides of Manchester. After agreeing a two-year loan deal with the Red Devils, Tevez quickly established himself as a key player for Sir Alex Ferguson.
Part of a devastating attacking trio alongside Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney, the forward scored 19 goals across all competitions to capture the Premier League and Champions League double in his first season at Old Trafford.
His second and final season with United may have brought Tevez a second Premier League winner's medal and his first League Cup triumph, but he was forced to play second fiddle at times in the season to new signing Dimitar Berbatov.
Starting 18 league games in his second campaign with United, compared to 31 in his debut season, didn't sit well with Tevez, who made clear his intention to depart the club at the end of his loan deal.
Upon his controversial £25million move to the Citizens in 2009, Tevez admitted a lack of communication with Ferguson left him feeling that there was a lack of respect towards him.
Speaking to Loaded magazine at the time, he said: "I think I deserved more respect than what was shown. It was very strange. In the first year everything went very well - I was part of the team and felt like I was important to the coach and the club.
"But in the second, there was a big change. "There was no communication with the manager and I began to feel as if I was not wanted. "Every footballer will say that if they do not feel wanted, then it is the beginning of the end."
Despite Tevez's insistence that it was feelings of not being wanted that led to his exit, ex-United chief executive David Gill had a different say on the matter. Having been with the club for 16 years and serving as their chief executive from 2003 to 2013, the 68-year-old Tevez's departure was centred around guarantees of his playing time and the ability of the owners of his rights to earn more money by moving to City.
Speaking on Rio Ferdinand's Five podcast, Gill said: "Well Tevez, we had him for two years and we had the right to buy him for £25.5m and we exercised the option to do that.
"I think you, you will know it better than I, but whereas in the first season it was him, Wayne [Rooney] and Cristiano [Ronaldo] up front, the second season we brought in Dimitar [Berbatov] and things like that.
"So perhaps he wasn’t in the team as much. I think ultimately the people who controlled him, because he wasn’t owned by a club. We weren’t dealing with a club, it’s is the people we did the deal with to get him in for the two years. Fully cleared by the Premier League, FA, I hasten to add.
"They basically got a lot more money by taking him to City. That was it. That became a financial thing for them. I think if Carlos had been insistent on staying at Manchester United, then he could have stayed at Manchester United because we said we were prepared to pay that money for him to stay.
"But ultimately he felt, for whatever reason, better opportunities at City or whatever it wasn’t going to work out because the owners of his rights, so to speak, it’s not allowed anymore but at the time it was, the owners of his rights effectively almost doubled their money I believe."
The first Manchester derby of the season commences on Sunday at the Etihad Stadium with both clubs in need of a win. City are currently on a two-match losing streak while United's only win of the season came via a 97th minute Bruno Fernandes penalty against newly-promoted Burnley.
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