Carlos Tevez to face Liverpool after Mark Hughes plays down retirement talk
20 Nov 2009 - 19:32:48
T?z, just four months into a five-year contract at Eastlands, said last week that he was "tired of so much football" and confessed that it "crosses my mind to hang up my boots" if Argentina win the World Cup in South Africa next summer.
Initial suspicions that T?z was talking merely of retiring from international football were clouded by the 25 year-old expressing a desire to return to Argentina.
Related ArticlesManchester v MerseysideBellamy fears he may have to retire in two yearsGlen Johnson fit to face Manchester CityLiverpool v Manchester City: match previewRobinho not wanted by Barcelona, says PuyolSport on televisionThe former Manchester United forward has struggled to justify his £25 million price tag at City since leaving Old Trafford in the summer, scoring just two league goals for the club.
Hughes admits that the player has been troubled by a knee injury since his arrival, but he is confident that City should have no fears over T?z's comments.
Hughes said: "On occasions, players will say things probably from an emotional perspective rather than a clear-minded perspective and maybe that's the situation in which Carlos has been caught.
"We lose things in translation when they come across the water, so I'm always wary of those things and it's not a concern for me.
"It's not something that I have seen in his play or general demeanour. I'm looking at him as an individual and it doesn't look like there is something weighing heavily on his mind.
"He has had a little bit of a problem with his knee. He can train and play, but it's a bit of a niggle that, ideally at some point, we'll be able to calm down. But he's fine.
"Maybe the international scene hasn't gone as well as he would have liked, so perhaps that's the thinking behind it."
With Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United breaking away from City and Liverpool in recent weeks, Saturday's encounter between the two clubs at Anfield has been billed as a land-grab for the fourth and final Champions League qualification berth.
Neither team go into the game in good form. Liverpool's run of one win in nine in all competitions is countered by City's return of one victory in seven league outings which includes five successive draws.
Hughes, who will name a fit-again Robinho in his squad, admits that City must return to winning ways. "A draw at Liverpool is a positive result but we want to break this run of draws because it has held us back.
"The sooner we break this cycle, the better from our point of view and there's nowhere better than Anfield to do that.
"I want to see big-time players grasping the moment and understanding the significance of games against the top four. We have to make an impression."
