Filed under: Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, Premier League, Football, Transfer News
Almost eight months after Carlos Tevez first said he wanted to leave Manchester City, he looks to be off. After eight months of terse soundbites from both player and club, where Tevez has claimed Manchester is "small and wet", the stand-off is almost over.Brazilian club Corinthians, Tevez's desired destination, have reached an agreement with City over a fee believed to be in the region of £40 million. And although personal terms are yet to be met, Eastlands manager Roberto Mancini seems resigned to losing his joint top scorer for last season.
Mancini, who is with his team on a pre-season tour of the USA, said: "We have an agreement with Corinthians but Carlos now is still a City player.
"Carlos is a fantastic player, a good guy for me. If we lose him, we lose an important player. But it is important that every player is happy to stay here or in our team. This is the most important thing. At the moment we are here, we are working with the other guys. We should think about this."
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Tevez is now free to concentrate on his future, after Argentina were knocked out of the Copa America on penalties - with the City man missing his spot kick - while Corinthians need to get the deal done by Wednesday, which is when the transfer window closes in Brazil.
And with 20 goals walking out the door, Mancini's concern is to find a replacement. And this is where things get interesting. None of this tit for tat bickering that has been the hallmark of the Tevez saga since last December - this is where City get to really annoy their Premier League rivals.
Sergio Aguero is City's main target as Tevez's replacement, as Mancini admitted over the weekend "it could be" possible that he joins the club.
But Chelsea have of course long been trailing the Atletico Madrid forward and to see the Argentinian head to England to join Manchester City will no doubt put the Blues' noses out of joint.
Aguero, according to the Daily Mirror, is keen on a switch to City - and will even take a pay cut (to a measly £160,000 per week) to make the deal happen.
Then there is Samir Nasri, who of course would not be a direct replacement for Tevez, but whose move would be more likely if City have £40 million burning a hole in their pockets courtesy of Corinthians' deal for Tevez.
And what Nasri leaving Arsenal would to to the Gunners would be to put a massive dent in their hopes of moving forward - and as such would put massive pressure on Arsene Wenger to hang on to the rest of his stars.
So even though Mancini is likely to lose Tevez - he will know by Wednesday - the prospect of bringing in some top-class replacements will no doubt soften the blow. And for fans, the idea of City once again trumping their Premier League rivals is not to be scoffed at.
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