Carlos Tevez has admitted that during his seven years in the Premier League, he put off learning English due to his "cultural problem" with the British.
The former striker for Manchester United and Manchester City claimed that early on, he made the decision that anyone who wished to communicate with him needed learn Spanish.
The former Argentine star, who also played for West Ham, claimed that his uncle's struggle with alcoholism after being called up for the Falklands War ended his dreams of being a professional footballer was the cause of his inability to fit in with English society.
Tevez, who notoriously bemoaned everything about Manchester on Argentinian TV when he was still City's captain, spoke to a radio host in his own country over the weekend: "I had a cultural problem with the English."
"I wanted them to learn Spanish, not English," I said.
I have an uncle who was a River Plate player. In my family, he is the only supporter of River.
He participated in the reserve squad before being called up to serve in the Falklands War just before his debut with the first team.
He struggled as a result, turning to alcohol. He was quite near to me, so that really stood out to me.
On DSportsRadio, the 39-year-old expressed his sentiments on England, saying: "The seven years I spent there were: Okay, I'm here for business, but I'm not getting used to English culture. Every action has a purpose.
Very few people are aware of this tale, but I may finally share it.
You want to talk to me, right? You should learn Spanish because I won't be learning it.
When they were both playing for City after the striker transferred from their rivals United, Pablo Zabaleta, also an Argentinian, urged Tevez to improve his English for the benefit of the team.
A little over a year after arriving in the UK, Zabaleta claimed in October 2009 that Carlos occasionally tries to speak English.
When he was still at Old Trafford, Tevez was criticized for his unwillingness to learn the language.
His English was so bad that he was unable to read the penalty notice that was delivered to him in September 2011, and as a result, he was spared punishment for a serious motoring offense.
While still serving as City's captain in June 2011, Tevez, who managed top-flight Argentine club Rosario Central until late last year, made his opinions about Manchester quite plain when he was questioned on one of his nation's major TV shows.
He said that he couldn't wait to permanently leave the city and that the neighborhood had "nothing."
The Argentine Oprah Winfrey who interviewed him, Susana Gimenez, noted that model Evangelina Anderson, another South American celebrity, had purchased a home in the sun-drenched Spanish resort of Marbella.
Yes, but Marbella is different from Manchester, Tevez responded, laughing. A vacation home can be purchased in Marbella. However, I'll never return to Manchester, not even for a vacation, and not for anything.
