Gabriel Jesus 'almost walked away' from Man City move

Teenage Brazil sensation Gabriel Jesus almost aborted his transfer to Manchester City over a row with his club Palmeiras, text messages sent to his former agent have revealed.

The 19-year-old agreed to a 27 million British-pound move to Etihad stadium in August and will join his new club at the end of the year.

But the deal nearly collapsed after Jesus became upset with the negotiation process, according to WhatsApp messages filed in a Sao Paulo court by his erstwhile agent Fabio Caran.

"You know how the president is," Jesus said, referring to Palmeiras president Paulo Nobre.

"In my opinion Palmeiras got barely what they had a right to, seriously. But sadly there are still some selfish people out there. I swear, I almost walked away from this deal so that Palmeiras would not get anything."

Caran has filed a lawsuit against Palmeiras, claiming that he was not paid his full entitlement for the transfer.

The messages were published by Brazilian news portal Uol on Monday.

In a statement, Jesus criticized Caran, saying he was "tricked and manipulated" by him.

"I am sad that a part of my conversation with my ex-agent has been used out of context, incomplete and without any responsibility," the Brazil No. 9 said.

"It is a shame, but my history with the fans, the Palmeiras board and president Paulo Nobre are much bigger than this. I have already passed the case to my lawyers who will take the necessary steps."

Sports marketing group CRS Sports owns 47.5% of the striker's economic rights, with Palmeiras holding another 30%. In his suit, Caran claimed he has the right to the other 22.5%.

Jesus is currently the equal top scorer in Brazil's Serie A championship with 11 goals from 19 matches.

He was part of the Brazil team that won the gold medal at the Rio Olympics in August and scored twice on his international debut in Brazil's 3-0 victory over Ecuador in a World Cup qualifier earlier this month. Endit