Milan may offer Carlos Tevez an escape route from Manchester City

 

The Manchester City striker Carlos Tevez, pictured with one of his daughters after arriving in Buenos Aires last month, is refusing to return to Manchester and face disciplinary proceedings. Photograph: Stringer Afghanistan Admin/Reuters

Carlos Tevez could be offered the chance to resurrect his career at Milan after initial talks about offering him a potential escape route from Manchester City.

Kia Joorabchian, Tevez's adviser, flew to Italy on Thursday and spoke at length to the Milan vice-president, Adriano Galliani, and the sporting director, Ariedo Braida, in a prearranged meeting at the club's head office.

Milan must now decide whether to propose a deal that will persuade City to allow Tevez, currently on strike in Argentina, to end his occasionally successful and frequently controversial spell at the club.

The Serie A side will almost certainly fail if their intention is to propose a loan for the man who shared last season's Premier League Golden Boot award, with 20 goals, but is in his third week of being awol and appears to have no plans to return.

One report in Italy talks of Milan offering €5m (£4.3m) to take Tevez until the end of the season, followed by a €20m agreement in June. City, however, want a straight sale as they seek to off-load a player who has become a pariah in Manchester because of the issues surrounding him at City and, formerly, Manchester United.

The Premier League leaders are also determined to get something approaching Tevez's true market value despite appreciating that the breakdown in his relations with the club may have severely affected the amount potential buyers are willing to pay. Italy appears to represent Tevez's best hope, with Internazionale and Juventus also known admirers, and a deal potentially out of the reach of the leading South American clubs. They, in particular, will be affected by City's stance that a loan move will not be entertained.

Tevez is still receiving a weekly salary of around £250,000 despite flying back to Buenos Aires on 8 November without the club's permission and defying their orders to return and face disciplinary proceedings. City are considering every option, including legal action, but will not discuss the details until the situation is resolved.

Tevez's last public appearance suggested he was not particularly missing being part of Roberto Mancini's squad. He teamed up with the golfers Sebastián Fernández and Andrés Romero to win the Buenos Aires grand prix, a tournament for professionals and amateurs. Asked about Tevez's state of mind, Fernández said: "He did not say anything about his problems with his club, but I was struck by the peace he had. And he plays golf very well."