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Football

15th May 2023

Carlos Tevez refused to learn English because his uncle became an alcoholic after fighting in Falklands War

Callum Boyle

Tevez decided that he would only speak to people in Spanish due to a cultural problem

Carlos Tevez has revealed that he refused to learn English during his seven years playing in the Premier League because of his ‘cultural problem’ with the British.

Tevez made the move to England in 2006, joining West Ham United before having spells at Manchester United and Manchester City.

However upon arrival, the former forward said that he decided that if people were to speak to him, they would have to learn Spanish.

The ex-Argentina star highlighted his uncle’s spiral into alcoholism after fighting in the Falklands War as the reason for his failure to adapt in England.

“I had a cultural problem with the English,” he told a local Argentinian radio station.

“I didn’t want to learn English, I wanted them to learn Spanish.

“I have an uncle who played in River Plate. He’s the only River supporter in my family. He played in the reserve team and when he was going to make his debut with the first team, he got called up to fight in the Falklands War.

“He suffered after that and became an alcoholic. That marked me a lot because he was very close to me.”

In a previous interview, while still at Man City as their captain, Tevez told reporters in his homeland that “everything was bad”.

“The weather, everything. It has nothing,” he famously said.

Since retiring from football, the 39-year-old spent a brief spell in charge of Rosario Central before leaving the club towards the end of last year.

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