Manchester City did not pay £47 million for Carlos Tevez says Kia Joorabchian

12 September 2009 11:21
Newly reported figures suggest the Eastlands club could have paid almost double the believed fee of £25.5 million, making Tevez the fifth most expensive player of all time. Only a handful of people involved in the deal, plus key Premier League employees involved in its administration, know the exact figure, and Joorabchian has been quick to deny there being any truth in the latest speculation. Related Articles * City can expose Wenger * Manchester City v Arsenal: match preview * Wenger urges Adebayor respect * Adebayor reveals Bendtner feud * Johan Djourou out for season * Wenger: double standards over Eduardo dive “This story is inaccurate and misleading,” he said. “There appears to be the hand of mischief at work as the numbers quoted are fictitious. “There was also no mystery about the true details as full disclosure was made both to the Football Association and the Premier League.” Conjecture surrounding the exact price paid for Tevez has not been helped by Manchester United’s defence over why they were unable to hold on to the 25-year-old, who had become a favourite among Old Trafford supporters. United have cast doubt on whether City only paid £25.5 million and hinted that the exact “transfer” which took the South American out of third party ownership into the sole charge of the Eastlands club was significantly above that sum and beyond the British record £32.5million Mark Hughes’ side paid to sign Robinho from Real Madrid 12 months ago It has been suggested the varying exchange rates might be one reason for the inflated price tag, although even if the £47million represented euros or US dollars, it would still be way in excess of the amounts first mentioned. Although they can hardly disguise an overall spending spree in excess of £120million this summer, City have tried to play down the amounts of money being splashed out by their Abu Dhabi owners. Manager Mark Hughes repeatedly stated he would be prepared to walk away from potential transfers if the price went too high, while accepting a slight premium would need to be paid to secure the right man. Once an attempt to lure England skipper John Terry north from Chelsea fell through, the Tevez deal was left as the most notable of the summer because it has pitched City’s new money in direct competition with United’s established position as England’s number one.

Source: Telegraph