Manchester City player Carlos Tevez is driven away from Manchester Airport, in Manchester, northern England Sept 28, 2011. Tevez's career at Manchester City was hanging by a thread after the Argentine striker angered coach Roberto Mancini after refusing to come off the bench in a 2-0 defeat at Bayern Munich that leaves big-spending City struggling in Group A in their first venture in the Champions League. [Photo/Agencies]

LONDON - Manchester City striker Carlos Tevez will face disciplinary proceedings for alleged breaches of contract after manager Roberto Mancini had said he refused to come on as a substitute in a Champions League game, the club announced on Wednesday.

Tevez was suspended last month while the club investigated his conduct in the match at Bayern Munich on Sept 27. According to Mancini, the Argentine international refused to come on during the 2-0 defeat.

"The club has been conducting an investigation into the events of 27 September at the Allianz Arena," City said in a statement on their website (www.mcfc.co.uk).

"The club has now reached a stage in its investigation where it has concluded there is a case for Carlos Tevez to answer of alleged breaches of contract.

"Accordingly the club has informed him that he will face disciplinary proceedings and the hearing will be convened shortly. Carlos will be required to report to Roberto Mancini for training on Thursday."

According to Mancini, he instructed Tevez to come off the bench with around 35 minutes of the game to go and the player refused.

The Italian also said Tevez was "finished" at City while he was manager.

The Argentine has since said he was not asked to come on but to warm up, and he felt he had already warmed up sufficiently.  

His adviser Kia Joorabchian said last week the striker was the victim of mistranslated comments and never refused to play against Bayern.

Tevez has been seeking a way out of Manchester for some time. Last December he put in a transfer request that the club turned down while he lodged another at the end of last season citing family reasons.

Scathing comments

He made scathing comments about Manchester on an Argentine chat show in June, saying the city "has nothing" and is "very expensive" and that he was "never going back to Manchester, not even on holiday".

Tevez nevertheless returned after a planned move to Brazilian club Corinthians fell through but was stripped of the club captaincy and found himself relegated to the bench as compatriot Sergio Aguero was paired with Edin Dzeko up front.  

The 27-year-old Tevez, the joint top scorer in the Premier League last season, joined City from Manchester United for a fee of around 32 million pounds ($50.4 million) at the start of the 2009-10 season.

Professional Footballers Association (PFA) chief Gordon Taylor said the evidence against Tevez "justified" a disciplinary hearing.

"If the evidence justifies a flagrant breach, for example a direct refusal to play, then (a sacking) is a possibility. If the evidence shows a reluctance just to warm up...then you'd look at his previous record of behaviour and if this was the first occasion," Taylor told Sky Sports News.

"It's a big situation but it has got to be decided proportionately.

"I think at the moment a lot of people are asking for his head...but they've got to remember he's always done well for the club in the past...and at the moment I would feel it doesn't justify a termination (of his contract)." ($1 = 0.634 British Pounds)