Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure has insisted that he and his teammates have forgiven Carlos Tevez for going AWOL last season.

The 28-year-old forward missed six months of action after refusing to warm up during the Citizens' Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich in September.

Despite manager Roberto Mancini saying that the player was "finished" at the club, he returned to the team in March and scored four goals to help his side become English champions for the first time in 44 years.

"Of course [the players like him]," said Toure. "He is a fantastic guy and a fantastic professional. He made a mistake. But the most important thing when you make a mistake you have to apologise. He apologised to everyone.

"Now he has come back and wants to show he will give everything for the team. His partnership with [Sergio] Aguero is fantastic.

"They have played for Argentina before. Now they play for Manchester City. I am sure they will score a lot of goals for the club."

City begin the defence of their Premier League title with a home match against Southampton on Sunday.