YOU may know him as the temperamental striker that spends his days sat in a pile of cash all day every day…
There’s no denying that Carlos Tevez certainly had an impact at all the clubs he played for, with the exception of Shanghai Shenhua, obviously.
Just look at the honours he’s won in the game.
Three Premier League titles, an FA Cup, a League Cup, a Champions League – and that’s just in England.
Tevez has won an astonishing 20 major trophies during his topsy-turvy career.
But imagine how many more it would have been if he’d kept himself fit.
He’s come through adversity…
Tevez bears the scars of a childhood accident in which he suffered third degree burns on his neck when he was ten months old, after being scalded with boiling water.
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When he joined Boca Juniors, aged 16, the club offered to pay for cosmetic treatment to help reduce the visibility of the scars.
Tevez refused, maintaining they were part of him and his past and that he didn’t want to change.
Admirable stuff.
He’s a hero at the Hammers…
During his one season at West Ham in 2006/07, Tevez endeared himself to Irons’ fans as he scored seven goals in their final 10 games.
His goals kept West Ham in the Premier League that season.
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He capped it all with the winner at Old Trafford on the final day, a goal which consigned Sheffield United to relegation.
And he was, briefly, at Manchester City too…
When Tevez swapped Manchester United for rivals City in 2009 he immediately became a cult figure in the blue half of the City.
They even erected a massive ‘Welcome to Manchester’ sign in Manchester’s Deansgate, a dig at Old Trafford not being in the official boundaries of Manchester.
United boss Alex Ferguson wasn’t impressed.
“It’s City isn’t it? They’re a small club with a small mentality. All they can talk about is Manchester United. They can’t get away from it,” he grumbled.
“They think taking Carlos Tevez away from Manchester United is a triumph. It is poor stuff.”
He’s a family man…
During his time at Manchester United, Tevez would often hide a baby’s dummy in his shorts so that when he scored he could whip it out and pop it in his mouth.
It was a gesture to his newly-born baby daughter.
Let’s just hope he didn’t then give it to his daughter.
Well, not always…
In March 2010, Tevez was given leave by Manchester City to return home to Argentina to visit his wife Vanessa who had gone into premature labour with their second child, Katie.
“With family affairs,” he said, “football takes a back seat.”
But as he flew back to Europe, Tevez did so with 27-year-old model Marianna Paesani in tow and the pair were spotted on canoodling on the plane.
“They ended up all over each other like a love-struck young couple,” said one observer.
He’s a man of many talents…
Back home in Argentina Tevez has performed as a frontman with his brother Diego’s band, Piola Vago.
The band began in the slums of Villa de Los Andes in Buenos Aires, but it’s fair to say he shouldn’t give up his day job.
He knows an earner when he sees one…
Tevez shocked the football world when he left Boca Juniors and signed for the Chinese Super League side Shanghai Shenhua.
What was even more astonishing was his reported salary – brace yourself – of £17.16 million a year.
That clocked in at a staggering £634,000 a week.
But he didn’t exactly bust a gut while he was there…
When Tevez returned to his boyhood club Boca Juniors in January, Tevez dismissed reports that he had been unfit and overweight during his time in China.
In fact, in an interview on Argentine television he seemed like he couldn’t care less. “It’s fine,” he shrugged, “because I was on vacation for seven months.”
Some holiday.
He does what he wants…
During a Champions League game against Bayern Munich in September 2011, Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini turned to the bench and called on Tevez to warm up.
He refused.
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A bust-up ensued, ending with Mancini telling Tevez to “go back to Argentina”.
Which he did, accompanied by an indefinite suspension and a £500,000 fine to mull over.
Given what he’s earned in the game, we’re sure that’s all forgotten by now.
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