MANCHESTER: Yaya Toure says Carlos Tevez wants to say sorry to Manchester City fans for his behaviour earlier in the season by helping the club secure the title.
Manager Roberto Mancini is considering handing Tevez his first league start for almost seven months when Sunderland visit Eastlands on Saturday.
Having spent most of the season at the top of the table, City trail leaders Manchester United by three points with eight games remaining, and have had a week to forget.
After being held to a 1-1 draw by Stoke last Saturday, United piled on the pressure by defeating Fulham on Monday before Mancini was pictured giving controversial striker Mario Balotelli a dressing down in training on Wednesday.
Yet Mancini is now set to turn to another unpredictable member of his squad to ensure City’s title race does not fade in the closing stages. Tevez has made two substitute appearances totalling 40 minutes since returning to the side earlier in the month following his infamous touchline row with Mancini during a Champions League defeat against Bayern Munich in Germany in September.
But the Argentina striker may start against Sunderland after scoring in a 71 minute run-out for the reserves at Morecambe on Wednesday.
The former Manchester United player, who has not started a league game since September, capped an energetic display by finding the net with an ambitious chip from the edge of the box.
Toure says Tevez is desperate to make amends for his behaviour earlier in the season by ensuring City pip his former club to the title.
“He knew when he came back to the club that he had made a very big mistake, but now everything is over and he is focused on winning the Premier League.”
Manchester City has plenty of additional motivation to beat Sunderland in the Premier League on Saturday.
Victory would put leader Manchester United under pressure, pay Sunderland back for what was only its second Premier League defeat of the season and give one player the pleasure of beating his hometown club.
Sunderland-born England winger Adam Johnson played the entire game at the Stadium of Light in January, so he was on the field to see Ji Dong-won score a last-minute winner in a match City had dominated.
“That defeat was hard to take because we played really well, dominated the match but the ball just wouldn’t go in the net for us,” Johnson said. “I don’t think they had any shots of note during the game and then they nick it right at the death, so that’s certainly in the back of our minds going into this game.” (Agencies)