AC Milan in talks to sign Manchester City's Carlos Tevez

AC Milan have opened talks with Carlos Tevez's advisors about a January move for the Manchester City striker.

Inter Milan and Juventus are also keen on the Argentine but his advisor, Kia Joorabchian, met AC officials in Milan on Thursday, BBC Sport has learned.

Joorabchian is quoted as having told reporters in Italy: "I spoke to Carlos and he is happy to move to Italy.

"We have spoken to Milan and the big Italian clubs are good options. Tevez wants to play at an important club."

City are only prepared to let Tevez leave on a permanent deal.

Tevez, 27, has been expected to leave City since he was found guilty of committing five breaches of contract in a Champions League game in September.

AC Milan are in the market for a striker as a replacement for Antonio Cassano, who is out for the season after undergoing a heart operation.

At present, there have been no direct talks between City and AC Milan over the transfer as Tevez's advisor first seeks to broker a deal.

City will only sell Tevez if the price suits them but they are keen to offload the striker, with manager Roberto Mancini recently reiterating his view that the striker is unlikely to play for the club again.

Tevez failed to report for training this month during the international break and was then photographed returning to Argentina, prompting the club to instruct their lawyers to take action.

It was the latest twist in an ongoing saga between Tevez and the club, who currently top the Premier League table.

The former Manchester United striker asked for a move away from England last December, stating he wanted to be closer to his family.

Then, in September, Mancini alleged that Tevez refused to come off the substitutes' bench in a Champions League fixture against Bayern Munich, while the player maintained there had been a misunderstanding.

An internal club investigation concluded that Tevez, who joined City in July 2009, was guilty of five breaches of his contract and the player was fined four weeks' wages, reduced to two following intervention from the Professional Footballers' Association.