Several months of speculation was confirmed by Carlos Tévez when he handed in his permission to leave Manchester City in the January transfer window. For now it looks like manager Roberto Mancini will keep his captain, with the club insisiting they want him to stay and honour his contract until July 2014.

There had been rumours that he wanted to retire all together. There had been rumours that he wanted to go back to Argentina to finish his career with Boca Juniors. There had been talks about Chelsea, Italy and Spain. A troubled relationship with City manager Roberto Mancini was cited as one of the main reasons.
Tévez now confirmed that he wanted to leave already before this season commenced but was convinced to stay. Despite some public clashes with Mancini, Tévez says he is not to blame. However his relationship with certain executives and individuals at the club was “beyond repair”. Tévez at first described the club’s owner Sheik Mansour to be understanding of his problems, which would indicate that he wouldn’t stop the player from leaving. However the club have refused to sell him for now and after their “clear-the-air-talk” Tévez made another u-turn and agreed to stay on.

Tévez might not leave in January, however this chapter of his transfer sagas might not be at rest until 2014. Missing his family and daughters in Argentina could be a strong indicator for a return to Boca Juniors. Should he decide on staying in Europe, the strongest club candidate will be Real Madrid. In the meantime we’ll wait and see what happens at the end of the 2010/11 season.

UPDATE – APRIL 25th 2011:
The possibility of losing Tévez again seems imminent for Manchester City. Tévez, who at present is injured, might in fact already have played his last match for the club. The relationship between him and manager Roberto Mancini remains strained and the club board are gradually accepting that he will leave at the end of the season. Credible sources have revealed that a £40 million bid from Internazionale is expected.

NOTE: Since this article was written Martin Jol turned down the job as Newcastle manager. Instead Alan Pardew has been appointed.

Despite his achievements with the club and despite having the backing of players and fans, a devastated Chris Hughton has been sacked by Newcastle. Newcastle owner Mike Ashley is expected to announce Dutchman Martin Jol to take over. Jol has just left Ajax Amsterdam with immediate effect. The irony is that here are a lot of parallells and paths crossed.

Former Irish international Chris Hughton has earned his credibility through hard work, wherever he has been in his career in football. Born and bred in London, he came through Tottenham’s youth system and established himself as one of the best left-backs the club has ever had. He played 13 years for Tottenham, winning two FA Cups and the UEFA Cup. He was capped 53 times for Ireland (qualified through his mother to play for the country) and finished his career with two seasons at West Ham and one at Brentford.
Hughton returned to Tottenham while taking his coaching badges and took charge of the reserve team. His talent was soon recognised and he was appointed assistant manager for various Spurs managers. At one stage he was also assistant manager for Ireland. He was David Pleat’s assistant when they won the 1999 League Cup and he was there with Martin Jol when Spurs had two consecutive 5th placings in the Premier League (2005/06, 2006/07). In the latter season Spurs also reached the FA Cup quarterfinal, the League Cup semifinal and the UEFA Cup quarterfinal. In November 2007 Jol was suddenly sacked by the Tottenham board and Hughton had to leave with him. It was shortly after this Hughton became assistant manager at Newcastle. He also functioned as caretaker manager twice before he was given the top position.

In Hughton’s first season as Newcastle manager he led the club back to the Premier League in their first attempt, by winning the Championship. At the time of his sacking on December 6th, Newcastle was positioned 11th on the table. They had just suffered two consecutive away defeats, in a season where they’ve also pulled off some incredible wins. Newcastle thrashed Aston Villa 6-0, Sunderland 5-1 and beat Arsenal 1-0 at the Emirates. They also knocked Chelsea out of the League Cup. It appears as if the results hasn’t been the issue. The Newcastle board have refused to give Hughton a permanent contract and have aired their view that they would like a manager with more experience. The two consecutive defeats to Bolton and West Bromwich was the excuse they were looking for. A statement from the club thanked Hughton for “his considerable efforts during the club’s transition from Championship to Premier League football”. Chris Hughton’s replacement will be the club’s sixth manager in three years.

Chris Hughton and Martin Jol during their time together at Tottenham.

Arsenal’s young Frenchman has been a rising star for a while already. However the 2010-11 season seems to be orbiting Nasri truly into international stardom. After having been Arsenal’s best player in the pre-season he has continued this in the Premier League, Champions League and domestic cups. From having been accused as a diver and young primadonna, he has stepped up his game by taking control in midfield for his team, while he is also turning out as a prolific goal scorer. His manager Arsene Wenger has praised how Nasri now has more variation in his game. He has become a player who can take charge and change a game. His dribbling skills, light-footed as a ballet dancer, came on full display when he scored two spectacular goals in a 2-1 win against Fulham on December 4th.
Nasri himself believes he has developed further after having been left out of France’s 2010 World Cup squad. He feels less pressure and keeps his head cool in front of the goalkeeper. He has vision, touch, runs well with or without the ball. Combined with talented team mates like Fabregas, Arshavin, Chamakh and Van Persie, Nasri is a main component for Arsenal turning into a genuine contender for the Premiership title. Arsene Wenger insists there is still much more to come from Nasri and his team. For now Nasri’s brilliance, most recently against Fulham, has taken Arsenal to the top of the table. The Premier League will pass the half way mark of the season on December 26th (Boxing Day).