Carlos Tevez has returned to Manchester City in the best shape of his career.

Tevez has stunned Manchester City's coaching staff by reporting back to the club lighter than he has ever been during his six years in England, says the Sunday Mirror.

The Argentinian striker has lost over a stone in his bid to prove his hunger for success has not been sated by the FA Cup and Premier League medals he has won in ­successive seasons with City.

A source close to Tevez said: ­"Carlos sometimes goes to a training camp in Switzerland to get himself fit for pre-season, but this time he worked on his own all the way through the summer.

"Mancini is very Italian in his ­obsession with the fitness and weight of his players, and everyone is given an individual training ­programme and a prescribed weight to maintain.

"Mancini demands his players can hit the ground running when it comes to pre-season.

"So Carlos did what was asked of him - and more. He has trained like a Trojan over the summer. He is now the lightest he has ever been during his time in England."