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Carlos Tevez has been permanently stripped of the Manchester City captaincy by manager Roberto Mancini.

The Argentine striker spent pre-season searching in vain for a new club and has been replaced as skipper by defender Vincent Kompany.

Mancini said: "Carlos wanted to leave for family reasons. I respected his opinion but Carlos is still here because we didn't find a solution.

"I decided in the summer that Vinnie [Kompany] was the captain."

Tevez has made one substitute appearance for City this season, replacing compatriot Sergio Aguero in the on 21 August.

He has been named in the squad to face Wigan on Saturday, but will not now be captain of the team.

Belgium international Kompany joined City from Hamburg in 2008 and made 53 appearances in all competitions last season. He also won the supporters' Player of the Year award as well as the players' Player of the Year honour.

Mancini added that Tevez would still be a key part of the squad in the coming season, as City make their debut in the Champions League. He said: "He's a fantastic player for us, someone who can score 20 goals a season."

, and for much of the summer .

Kompany has led the side in the three Premier League matches so far this season - City have won all of them as they seek a first championship title since 1968.