Carlos Tevez has admitted he wishes Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney had have followed him to Manchester City.
Tevez left United for City in the summer of 2009 and he has established himself as a key player at United's bitter rivals.
Rooney was linked with a move to City last month after contract talks initially stalled at Old Trafford, though he ended up signing a new five-year deal.
City were strongly linked with the England star's signature and on the eve of the first Manchester derby of the season at Eastlands, Tevez has admitted he would have loved to have been reunited with Rooney.
He said: "Wayne is a player of great quality. He was a team-mate and a friend of mine at United and he's one of those men that is better to have on your team than against you.
"For me he is the best English striker of recent years. I would have liked him to come here, of course. But it was complicated for him to leave United. So we have to concentrate on our own game."
Tevez insists he has no regrets at swapping Old Trafford for Eastlands and he is happy with life at City.
"I made the change and so far I'm not sorry," added Tevez. "As players we are professionals and we have to make decisions that are right for us.
"But I also realise many people may not have understood my decision. All I can do is concentrate on my game and play well for City. And at the minute it is going well for me."
Tevez insists City are not obsessed about beating United, but admits they are keen to overtake their local rivals
Any battle against the United defence is never easy," continued Tevez. "It's a big challenge.
"But at City we're not obsessed by United. Our challenge is just to improve on last year and by doing that perhaps we can overtake our neighbours. That's our aim."
