Former Manchester United forward Carlos Tevez has claimed Sir Alex Ferguson broke a promise to him before he left the club to join arch rivals Manchester City.
Tevez infamously made the switch from United, where he was on loan, to City in 2009. He would go on to win the Premier League for a third time, and hold a banner reading ‘RIP Fergie’ during the 2012 title celebrations.
The former forward would later try and explain his actions, but has now revealed that Ferguson is responsible for the reason why he left the club.
Tevez was appearing on the Rio Ferdinand Presents channel, and said: ‘They spoke to me (before) the two year loan. After, if you play well, (we) pay the contract after one year.
‘Fergie told me, “Carlos, now I’m going to pay out your contract and you’re going to stay in Manchester”. The team went to a pre-season. I remember this conversation with Fergie. He said “I’m going to pay for Berbatov but you, don’t worry, I’m going to buy you and we’ll do your contract.’
That didn’t transpire, though, and United refused to pay the fee that would have his deal made permanent. He stayed at the club for another year before leaving.
Carlos Tevez (left) has suggested a broken promise from Sir Alex Ferguson (right) led to his Manchester United departure
Tevez would leave United for arch rivals Manchester City in 2009 and win another league title
‘For me, the people understand,’ Tevez said of the United fans, who have been split on their view of him since he departed. ‘They don’t understand about Fergie speaking to me, or behind the scenes. What happened between Fergie and me, I think people don’t understand that.’
He added: ‘I think that Ferguson had, from the day we talked, up to six months to keep his word. And he didn’t. On the contrary, he started leaving me on the bench. In my head, he started pushing me aside so he could bring down what I was worth. And that’s what hurt me the most.’
Ferdinand was sympathetic towards Tevez, suggesting that his exit ‘killed’ United, who still haven’t won a Premier League title since 2013.
And it seems Tevez, who is now a manager and was most recently in charge of Talleres in his native Argentina, still has a soft spot for the Red Devils, despite all that went on after his departure.
‘For me it was hard Rio,’ he added. ‘It was hard because I felt like I’d given my heart to United. And I didn’t feel the same.
‘I didn’t feel the same because, if you remember, we won the Champions League. We won the league and, and then, to bring down my price, they brought in a player and I carried on the same way for the first months. The second months, let’s say, of the second year. But by the second, the second month, I didn’t want to know any more.’
He added: ‘I had a great time at United. The other team, City, for me, was like a revenge. I didn’t get back what I gave.’
Head to the Rio Ferdinand Presents YouTube channel to watch the full interview, available from 8.00 UK time on Thursday 29th October
