Manchester City fans are anxious the Carlos Tevez transfer request saga does not have a negative impact on one of their most promising seasons.
News that captain Tevez had asked for a move emerged hours after City had gone joint top of the Premier League. Tevez insists he will leave but City say they will not sell him in January.
"I'd just like a line to be drawn under it," Kevin Parker, general secretary of City's supporters club, told BBC Sport. "Nobody is bigger than the club."
Tevez has scored 39 goals in 60 games for City since signing from rivals Manchester United in the summer of 2009.
"I'm very disappointed because he's been fantastic for us," Parker added.
"But ultimately I'm a believer that if you have a player in your squad who doesn't want to play for you then your best bet is to maximise the opportunity, get the money you can for him and move him on.
"He's the captain and he should be setting a better example. On the day that we go joint top of the Premier League we should be enjoying that opportunity, and the captain has decided he wants to get involved in a slanging match between him and the football club.
"There's nobody bigger than the football club and as much as I'll be disappointed to see him go, we have to look forward."
The Tevez story has been dominating the sports news agenda since Saturday night when, shortly after a 3-1 victory at West Ham took them level on points with Premier League leaders Arsenal, City revealed they had rejected their captain's transfer request.
On Sunday, the 26-year-old stated he was determined to leave because his relations with "certain executives" at the club have "broken down beyond repair".
According to Dave Wallace, editor of City fanzine King of the Kippax, the situation has left fans confused and disappointed just when the should be revelling in the prospect of ending their 42 year wait for the league title.
"It's very baffling really," he told BBC Sport. "I don't see how he can have fallen out with the executives because he can't speak English and why would he be dealing with them?
"As far as the fans are concerned, it would be a massive blow for us to lose a player like Tevez.
"We've had all this stick from the media and everybody saying the players are mercenaries and millionaires and we just get to the top of the league for the first time in years and it's all taken away with the Tevez publicity.
"There is a little bit of resentment from the fans but I think overall we would love him to stay and carry on playing as he is.
"Obviously the club has to do everything they can to placate him and the fans would appreciate that and want him to stay but if he's adamant he's going to go there's no point in keeping a player who is unhappy."
Losing Tevez would leave a gaping hole in a City side who have come to rely on his goal-scoring exploits.
The Argentine has scored 10 of their 24 league goals this season, while City have not lost in any of the 26 games in which he has found the net.
Mario Balotelli has had disciplinary problems since joining from Inter Milan |
Nonetheless, Parker is optimistic there is life after Tevez.
"He has scored lots of goals and been a bit of a talisman for us but there is no doubt in my mind that we will move upwards and onwards either with or without Carlos Tevez," he said.
"There are some very good strikers about in world football and hopefully we will be able to get one of those in January and carry on this fantastic run we are on at the moment."
While City fans struggle to come to terms with the possible loss of their talisman, Manchester United supporters are permitting themselves a wry smile over the behaviour of a player who walked out on them to join their bitter rivals last year.
"It's more 'I told you so' than anything else for United fans," said Liam Bradford, assistant editor of the fanzine Red News, and presenter of BBC Radio Manchester's Red Wednesday show.
"I'm not surprised at all. You only have to look at his track record to see that he never seems to stay anywhere for more than a couple of seasons.
"If he's going to do this to arguably one of the biggest clubs in the world, what's going to stop him doing it to Manchester City?
"It's very disappointing that a player of his calibre and skill set is so mercenary."
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