The Carlos Tevez show

It is hard as a football fan not to like Carlos Tevez: a small, nice guy from one of the poorest and harshest neighbourhoods, who had a harsh upbringing, but fought against it to become an outstanding footballer. He is a great striker, and his constant fighting for the team, running, tackling, and taking responsibility upon his shoulders, has made him loved in every single place he has played. In all his clubs, from Corinthians, West Ham, Manchester United, and Manchester City now, he has become a hugely important captain, who has carried them to one of their first title for many years, the FA Cup final victory against Stoke recently.
But at the same time this great player is also a moaner, who creates a difficult atmosphere in every team: he has left clubs suddenly, after talking with the press about how unhappy he is, something that is also starting now in Manchester City, where rumours about his leaving for Boca Juniors have started to abound.
It is perhaps because of his upbringing and strong Argentinean mentality, but it is obvious that while he plays extraordinarily, he is not comfortable in England, and it has been said that he is there so that his daughter can get all the things he never had, something you can only sympathise with as a person, but is more difficult to swallow as a fan of one of the teams where you constantly hear him complaining.

There is no doubt Mr. Tevez would feel more comfortable in Argentina, but even in a country where a player like him is adored, he creates controversy. In the national team he has never performed really well, but he was a favourite of ex-coach Diego Maradona, who insisted on using him for the World Cup, sacrificing the mid-field general Juán Sebastián Verón with dire consequences against the dangeous German team during the 2010 World Cup quarterfinal.
Still, such an extraordinary player is difficult to keep out from the team, but that is exactly what Argentinean coach Sergia Batista seems poised on doing in spite of strong criticism from many sides, not least Mr. Maradona. But it does seem that if Argentina is to being the best out of Messi, Mr. Tevez does not fit into the neo-Barcelona style that Mr. Batista wants to implement and try out in the coming Copa América in Argentina.
Any fan will be disappointed not to be able to see such a player as Mr. Tevez, but at the same time, it is a question of the balance of the team which is the most important, and less so the qualities of independent players. And in that regard, keeping Mr. Tevez out may be the least bad option.