Joorabchian fails to rule out Tevez move

Carlos Tevez’s agent last night refused to confirm where his client would be playing next season.

Tevez, 24, this week denied he had rejected a contract offer from the Premier League champions, insisting he has had no discussions about making permanent the loan deal which expires in the summer.

Kia Joorabchian was vague last night when asked if Tevez would be at Old Trafford past the end of this campaign.

“It’s very hard to predict,” Joorabchian told BBC Radio Five Live Sport. “It’s football. Things change by the minute, by the hour. It’s not a no. You never know.

“All Carlos said in the interview was that it was not true, he has not rejected an offer from Manchester United, he has not made crazy demands. He just wanted the fans and the people to know that we haven’t had any contract talks.

“That’s the bottom line. He wanted to say ’How could I reject something if I’ve never spoken about it’?

“Carlos has never made an issue or a problem. He doesn’t have a problem at all with Sir Alex (Ferguson). He’s never had a fight with Sir Alex or any arguments.

“All of these things are being created around a simple story that Carlos wanted to put straight.

“He’s saying ’I’m happy to continue doing what I do best. If I get a new contract and everything works out, fantastic. If it doesn’t, I’ll go to another club’.”

Ferguson is unlikely to give a public airing to his private views over Tevez, although it is likely to have been pointed out to the Argentinian his manager actually said it was an attempt to bring forward talks on the South American’s future that have stalled, not the negotiations themselves.

However, it is now clear the longer an impasse between the two parties remains, the more scope for speculation and rumour-mongering, which could cause further friction.

Equally, in the current economic climate, it is difficult to see how United chief executive David Gill could justify shelling out a reported £30million ’transfer’ fee to seal Tevez’s permanent registration given he has quite often found himself left out of Ferguson’s starting line-up.

Meanwhile, Edwin van der Sar will be fully supportive of Ferguson if, as expected, the veteran Dutchman is left out of Manchester United’s side to face Derby tonight.

Van der Sar’s only previous appearances in the competition for the Old Trafford outfit came at the same stage three years ago, when victory over Blackburn set United up for a final win against Wigan.

It represented the goalkeeper’s first medal for the Red Devils, since when he has gone on to collect two Premier League trophies and make the vital Champions League-winning save before going on to be crowned best on the planet in Japan last month.

And those experiences make Van der Sar quite relaxed about his watching brief at Pride Park, even though he might only have 18 months left in the game.

“It won’t be hard to watch,” he said.

“You like to pack as much in as you can and it is nice to play semi-finals and finals but the manager has a good eye on the whole situation.

“It is not like a 100m sprint. It is a long season and you have to focus on the priorities. You can’t play in every single game, no player could. That is why you get a rest and miss matches.”

Ferguson will not want to take any risks with players certain to figure against Chelsea on Sunday, although Paul Scholes might still be included along with Tevez.