'There is no question about his long-term future here,' the Scot said back in 2007. Such was Tevez's impact that Ferguson felt confident enough to confirm a fee had already been put in place for a permanent deal, three months into a two-year loan. That deal was confirmed in August 2007, and by the end of November, the striker had bagged five goals in red and been hugely impressive as part of the attacking trio that also included Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney. In the end, his MSI company paid the Hammers £2million and Tevez joined the Reds on a two-year loan. Warnings were not heeded and United made their move a year later, again with the shadow of ownership rights hanging over discussions to the point in which Joorabchian issued West Ham with a High Court Writ. In hindsight, that should have been a red flag for those at Manchester United: where Tevez goes, drama follows. The Hammers were fined £5.5million but managed to avoid a points deduction before escaping relegation by the skin of their teeth. The Argentine's arrival in England set the foundations for multiple controversies, signed by West Ham United under a breach of third-party ownership rules in which the rights of the player were partially held by agent Kia Joorabchian's company, Media Sports Investment (MSI). It takes a brave soul to switch from red to blue in Manchester at the best of times, but of those that have crossed the divide, no one has done so with the same level of drama as Carlos Tevez.

Land on Fire by Gary Ferguson