Carlos Tevez thanked Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini for keeping faith with him.

'I am very happy I played very well today but the most important thing is that I want to say thank you to my colleagues for all the support,'' he said.

Tevez followed his third strike by mimicking a golf-swing in front of the raucous City following, who seem to have forgiven him for his misdemeanours. Some saw that as a dig at Mancini after the Italian's comments about Tevez being busy playing golf in Argentina during his battle with the club.

But the striker said: 'It was an important goal, not just for me but it was important for the people, for the club and for the fans, for my colleagues, for Roberto,

'We all went through some difficult times. That's why I celebrated the way I did because I have my feet on the floor and I am happy for everyone.''