Tevez takes time out

As per Daniel Taylor in The Guardian, it has been confirmed that the injury that forced Carlos Tevez out of the Arsenal game is worse than initially antcipated, and there is a real possibility that he will miss a number of games, including the derby in two weeks time.

As a result of the injury, which has definitely ruled him out of this weekends game against Wolves, Taylor writes:

The decision to allow Tevez to take control of his own fitness, rather than working with the club's medical staff, is based on the player missing his family and Mancini's desire to make sure the man he appointed as captain at the start of the season is settled in his personal life.

City were aware of these issues before Roque Santa Cruz told a Spanish radio station yesterday that he believed Tevez was homesick and there is a concerted desire behind the scenes at Eastlands to work through any problems with their most high-profile player. Mancini had already allowed him to spend an extra day with his family after the last international break.    

The expectation on Tevez has been huge this season with little other options given the form (until recently) of Emmanuel Adebayor, fitness of Mario Balotelli and the lack of faith in both Jo and Roque Santa Cruz. The timing of course is not ideal - with the injury occuring as a result of the demands required of Tevez - but both Adebayor and Balotelli will be expected to pick up the burden of Tevez's absence.

An interesting point of course is the decision to allow Tevez to return to Argentina, coming in the wake of Santa Cruz's comments regarding Tevez's problems with homesickness, and it is clear (as Taylor states) that there flexibility with the player in order to ensure a harmony that has at times been tested.

It is a sound move by Mancini, who is clearly keen to maintain an equilibrium with a player who has exceeded expectations since joining the club and has become an almost irreplaceable presence. Given Tevez has no chance of playing this weekend (and unlikely to be risked in the Europa League next week in Poland) the hope is that he will return in a sound frame of mind in time for the West Brom fixture the weekend preceeding the game against United.