Login
Send a message
Date of Birth: Sunday, February 5, 1984
Birth Place: Argentina
Height: 168cm
Position: Attacker
Former Clubs/Teams: West Ham United, Corinthians, Boca Juniors

Biography

Carlos Tevez is an attacker who plays for Argentina and Manchester City in the English Premier League. He can play as the main striker, leading the line and keeping the defence on their toes, but is at his best when he is positioned in ‘the hole’ between the midfield and strikers, where he can thread quality passes through to the strikers and unleash powerful shots. He is an integral member of the Argentina first-team, having won the Olympics in the sky-blue and white shirt.

Childhood

Carlos Tevez was born on 5th February 1984, in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He grew up in the rough district of ‘Fuerte Apache’, which led to his ‘Apache’ nickname. When he was three years old he accidentally pulled a pan of boiling water over himself, scalding his face and neck. The scars are still noticeable today, with Tevez having refused the surgery that was offered by Boca Juniors because the scars were part of being him.

Tevez was a talented footballer, with such close control and dribbling skills, and was picked up by Argentinean giants Boca Juniors, who he supported as a child.

Early Career

After impressing in the youth ranks at Boca, Tevez was thrown in at the deep end with a debut at just 17 years old in October 2001. He scored his first goal later that season, after a handful of appearances, but only became a first-team regular at the start of the 02/03 season. Boca finished in second place in both the Apertura and Clausura championships, with Tevez grabbing 10 goals and helping the team to victory in the Libertadores Cup (the South American Champions League).

He improved on this in the following season, leading Boca to the Apertura Championship and the Intercontinental cup. He was named as the 2003 Argentine Footballer of the Year. Boca suffered a loss of form in the first half of the 2004/05 season, finishing the Apertura in eighth place before they broke up for the Olympics.

Tevez put in some stellar performances for Argentina’s U-23 side as the Argentine side romped to the gold medal, beating Brazil in the final in Athens. Tevez wanted to return to Boca to help them rise up the league table, but he never got the chance – Boca sold him to Brazilian club Corinthians, which suddenly had vast amounts of money following MSI’s acquisition of the club. Tevez has since stated he would like to return to play for Boca again one day.

Carlos Tevez joined up with other great players like Javier Mascherano at one of the most successful Brazilian teams of all time. Whilst the fans were lukewarm to him at the start, after a few stunning goals he became one of their favourites – not least because even though he was a forward he chased after the ball to win it back when the team lost it – he was the first line of the Corinthians defence!

Carlos helped Corinthians to win the league title in 2005, but had problems with Corinthians in his second season – with Carlos ultimately refusing to play for the club. A transfer to a big European club seemed imminent, but everyone was surprised when Carlos Tevez, tipped to be one of the World’s Best players, signed for lowly West Ham United in England.

With some decidedly dodgy dealing, Tevez was sold by Corinthians to MSI (an investments company), who then loaned him out to West Ham, where they had good business links. The idea was to showcase Carlos and his compatriot Javier Mascherano in England to ensure the best-price possible from a big European club.

The plan didn’t quite work – both players failed to settle, and West Ham’s form slumped after the Argentineans had arrived – losing their next 9 games. On top of that, the contracts that Mascherano and Tevez had been signed on didn’t seem to add up – third-party ownership was frowned upon because of the influence that these money-men seemed to be having on West Ham and the players.

Whilst Mascherano moved to Liverpool after deciding that West Ham was a lost cause, Tevez stayed and stuck it out. He scored his first goal in March, and became the team’s lucky charm – scoring seven goals, setting up many more, and scoring the goal that kept West Ham up on the last day of the season – at Old Trafford against Manchester United. It was time for Tevez to move to a bigger club.

With the third-party ownership agreement complicating matters, Manchester United weren’t sure who they needed to negotiate with in order to sign Tevez. West Ham claimed to have his full registration, but MSI begged to differ. Eventually the ownership problems were solved, with Tevez effectively buying himself out of his West Ham contract. He joined Manchester United on a two-year loan, with an option for United to buy him at the end of this for £22m.

At United he quickly became a hero of the fans, who appreciated his work-rate. Linking up with Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo was a dream to Carlos, and the three of them led United to a memorable Premier League and Champions League double.

He made less appearances in his second season at United, with Dimitar Berbatov’s arrival pushing Tevez out of the first-team, and Tevez forced to accept the occasional game. The fans continue to chant his name, and hope that Sir Alex Ferguson will sanction the £22m fee at the end of the season.

Current Club

Carlos Tevez rejected Manchester United's overtures at the end of the season, despite two Champions League Final appearances in two years, and moved across the city to Manchester City, where he hopes to play in every game.

International

Carlos Tevez first came to the World’s attention whilst playing at the U-17 World Cup, though his most notable performances for Argentina were at the 2004 Olympic games – Tevez scored 8 goals in 6 matches as Argentina steam-rollered their way to the gold medal. Tevez was taken to the World Cup 2006 in Germany, scored two, and became an integral member of the team.

Diego Maradona’s appointment as the national team’s manager has seen Carlos’s stock rise further – Diego sees much of his game in Tevez, and plays Tevez, Messi and Aguero together in a formidable front-line.