The Corinthian spirit

"We intend to do things differently. Everyone else in South America exports their best players to make money but our mission is to create a different type of club that buys players. We won't sell players as it's bad for the country for all the top stars to be shifted out."

Although there is no doubting Jaroobchian's passion, his primary concern is profit. In return for an initial investment of £18m, Tevez, and a commitment to meet Corinthians' running costs for the next 10 years, MSI will receive 51 per cent of the club's profits over that period. Jaroobchian is confident there is money to be made.

He said: "When you think of the potential for growth we've spent nothing. What did Adrian Mutu cost Chelsea? They spent £21m on one player and that has bought us control of a huge football club. The risk is extremely small. We've already generated enough interest to get out with a substantial profit in just three months.

"Football is at a high in Europe but it's still incredibly low in South America. There is no money being invested so we think we can take them from this low to a European level. What was Manchester United worth 20 years ago and look where they are now? They are a $1.5bn [£780m] football club. Corinthians cannot go that far but there are 170 million people in Brazil. There is far less wealth but far more people so you don't need them to spend £50 on watching a match.

"We plan to change everything. We'll buy more players, build a new stadium and export Brazilian football by getting more international television coverage. The first priority is to build a great team but after that we'll attract big sponsors and start European tours. I'd love to bring Corinthians to London for exhibition games."

The Tevez signing has bought Jaroobchian some time but many in Sao Paulo are suspicious of the mysterious outsider. His position has not been helped by confusion over his identity, with a Brazilian newspaper claiming he has registered five different identities, three birth-dates and two nationalities.

Jaroobchian admits that clerical errors have led to two nationalities and dates of birth being filed in the register of directorships at Companies House, but insists he is British. The source of his wealth is even less clear and he has been involved in car production, information technology and several venture capital projects since abandoning a chemistry degree at Queen Mary, University of London, 13 years ago.

Jaroobchian said: "I'm British as I've lived here most of my life. When we left Iran we moved to Canada for four years and some papers said I was Canadian but I'm as British as you can get. I grew up in London, went to a British boarding school and university. My date of birth is 14 July 1971. I haven't got three birthdates but there's a misprint in Companies House, one says 14 and the other 25."

Having secured Tevez, Jaroobchian is now chasing a Brazilian equivalent, with Ronaldo and his much sought-after successor Robinho in the frame.

He said: "We would like to sign Robinho but it will be hard because he wants to leave Brazil and Santos and Corinthians are great rivals. We've spoken with his agent but I rate Tevez as the better player and he was our first choice. Ronaldo is a genuine possibility. It's up to the coach."

With Chelsea also chasing Robinho, Jaroobchian and Abramovich may meet again.