Source: Team_Talk
Zabaleta keen for Tevez to return
Pablo Zabaleta is hoping he can hand the Manchester City captain's armband back to Carlos Tevez this weekend.[LNB] Tevez returned to Manchester on Thursday after a spell in Argentina aimed at helping him shake off both a thigh injury and a bout of homesickness.[LNB]He is now in contention for Sunday's Premier League clash against West Brom - earlier than initially expected - and Zabaleta will be happy to see his compatriot.[LNB]Zabaleta captained City in Thursday's 3-1 Europa League defeat at the hands of Lech Poznan, the club's third successive loss following on from poor results against Arsenal and Wolves.[LNB]But he knows Tevez's presence lifts City to a different level and is eager to welcome him back into the side.[LNB]"It's nice to hear the news that Carlos is back. He is one of our best players at the moment, and when he plays you have a lot of possibilities to win," he said.[LNB]"Everyone is important for the team, but we know Carlos is a great player. When he is out of the team, it is not the same - he is our captain and a great player.[LNB]"The fact he is back is very positive, and we all hope we see him run out on Sunday."[LNB]City boss Roberto Mancini is currently facing the toughest time of his brief Eastlands career following the disappointing recent performances and reports of player unrest.[LNB]He too will be glad to have Tevez back but he insists his absence was not the reason for Poznan's triumph at the Stadion Miejski.[LNB]Mancini was also without the Toure brothers in Poland and chose to hand the likes of Shay Given, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Joleon Lescott and Wayne Bridge some game time.[LNB]Reflecting on the outcome, Mancini said: "Of course Tevez is important, like Nigel De Jong is, like Kolo is, like Yaya is. But this game was strange.[LNB]"If we played this game 100 times we would win maybe 90 times. But we must continue on because sometimes you lose a game you do not deserve to lose. That is football."[LNB]Thursday's defeat, which was sealed by two home goals in the last five minutes after Emmanuel Adebayor had put the visitors level from close range, saw Poznan replace City at the top of Group A.[LNB]Both sides are on seven points and Juventus' draw against Red Bull Salzburg ensured the pair remain favourites to secure qualification.[LNB]Zabaleta would have preferred to seal City's passage in style with a second win over Poznan and warned his team-mates that standards must remain high.[LNB]"We are disappointed, it's a bad result, and we had a great chance to win this game," he said.[LNB]"We were unlucky to concede that second goal in the last five minutes but you never know what will happen until the last minute.[LNB]"We still have seven points, and the draw between Juventus and Salzburg is a good result for us, though it's really bad when you have to say that, because you have to try to win every game.[LNB]"If we want to be a great team, we have to win these games."[LNB]
