Carlos Tevez has confessed to harboring intense animosity toward Gary Neville, admitting he “wanted to kill” the former England captain in the wake of his controversial 2009 transfer from Manchester United to Manchester City. The Argentine forward revealed that he was left fuming by Neville’s public criticisms, which accused him of disrespecting Sir Alex Ferguson during his acrimonious departure from Old Trafford. This admission sheds new light on the volatile personal dynamics behind one of the Premier League’s most infamous local derbies, highlighting how off-pitch tensions often mirror the on-field intensity of the Manchester rivalry.
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Tevez’s move to the Etihad Stadium sent shockwaves through English football, as he swapped the club where he had secured two league titles and a Champions League crown for his fierce local rivals. At the time, Manchester City were freshly armed with Abu Dhabi investment and determined to disrupt the Premier League’s established hierarchy, making Tevez’s arrival a significant statement. The transfer was triggered by a bitter contract dispute, with Tevez claiming Ferguson broke a verbal promise to sign him permanently after his two-year loan spell concluded, a narrative that fueled years of speculation and resentment between the player and the United hierarchy.
The lingering rivalry with Neville stemmed from the full-back’s public assertions that Tevez’s actions were a direct insult to the manager’s authority, a claim the striker fiercely rejected. Tevez’s recent comments underscore the deep-seated frustration he felt at being portrayed as a disloyal figure during a pivotal moment in his career. While the two men have since moved on to different chapters of their lives, this revelation serves as a stark reminder of the emotional toll that high-stakes transfers and public scrutiny can take on elite athletes, cementing the Tevez-Neville feud as a defining narrative of the late 2000s Premier League era.
Source: Yahoo Sports
