Carlos Tevez Saga Rumbles On

July 12, 2007 by Keith

The Carlos Tevez transfer to Manchester United is giving the papers something to write about during the summer. As we posted last week on ManU Blog, United were hoping to have the deal sown up by now but, even though United have agreed personal terms with Tevez, negotiations have reached deadlock. The Premier League have ruled that West Ham United must receive the bulk of the fee and have blocked the transfer, but the Hammers are unable to handle the deal because the player’s economic rights are owned by businessman Kia Joorabchian.

This transfer is turning into a major mess. The Premier League can no longer act as an independent advisor in the deal because they have a vested interest and are now trying to cover their back. You will recall they allowed West Ham to continue playing Carlos Tevez last season, after accepting the assertion in a previous controversial ruling, that West Ham controls the player and not his business advisor.

Apparently, there should be no problem with Manchester United and Kia Joorabchian completing a deal directly, but the Premier League will not let that happen because it will reopen the old can of worms regarding Premiership relegation issues and potential legal action from Sheffield United, who feel they were unfairly relegated. This means that the Football Association and FIFA will now have to stick their noses in to broker a solution to the stalemate, and this will only prolong the saga making it even more complex. Manchester United are anxious to finalise the deal so are sure to endorse any move that would facilitate this.

Amidst all this complicated wrangling, the message from Carlos Tevez is clear – he wants to play for Manchester United and he has told the club he is on his way. It is clear that Tevez is a good player and United fans are excited by the prospect of him pulling on a Reds shirt next season. There now remains an anxious wait to see if the Premier League, West Ham and Kia Joorabchian, the FA and FIFA can sort out an acceptable agreement and avoid a long legal battle.

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