Soccer:Manchester City midfielder Nigel de Jong says the players might be tempted to do "something crazy" in a bid to prevent Carlos Tevez leaving Eastlands. The Argentina striker and club captain is in a dilemma about his future plans because of the difficulties of being separated from his daughters.
Tevez has been key to City’s success this season and took his goals tally to 20 with a brace in the victory against Stoke on Tuesday night.
De Jong said: “Everyone will respect his decision but he is one of our main players and important for this club. We have to make sure he will stay, and we will do anything in our power to do that. Maybe we will get some Argentinian dancers over, or sometimes do the rumba in the dressing room.
“We might do something crazy to persuade him but he is a happy guy and he loves the team so we will see what happens.”
That victory against Stoke took City into third place and a win over Bolton on Sunday at the Reebok Stadium will ensure automatic entry to the Champions League group stages. Arsenal would be condemned to qualifying, no matter their result in the London derby with Fulham.
It would be a fitting finale to the campaign for City, according to De Jong, after they lifted the FA Cup for the first time in 42 years at the weekend. Bolton have lost four successive matches and the Dutch midfielder is intent on inflicting more pain on Owen Coyle’s side.
He said: “We are almost there and have everything in our hands. We need to secure that third place. That would be a big step for us and make it a fantastic season. Arsenal haven’t been in their best form but we didn’t expect them to lose at home (to Aston Villa).
“The big thing with this group is that we are united. You have to make sure you are one big, happy family, otherwise you do not have any success. Getting into the Champions League was our main target all season and we have done that step by step.
“But the FA Cup has been special — the whole squad just loved winning that cup. That was the cherry on the pie.”
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