Sergio Aguero faces another spell on the sidelines after suffering a hamstring injury in Manchester City’s 1-1 draw with West Ham on Saturday.
The Argentine striker only returned to action last week after four months out following knee surgery.
City boss Pep Guardiola revealed he was waiting to discover the full extent of the injury to the club’s all-time record scorer.
“It’s a muscular (injury), hamstring, I think,” he said. “Tomorrow we will know.”
Aguero’s setback is the latest in a series of injury and illness issues that have hit City, who were without Fernandinho, Aymeric Laporte, Nathan Ake and Gabriel Jesus at the London Stadium.
The City boss, whose side are 12th in the Premier League after substitute Phil Foden cancelled out Michail Antonio’s spectacular opener, said it was a testing period.
“The reality is we had four or five guys with Covid,” he added. “We didn’t have time for regeneration.
“Our striker (Gabriel Jesus) was injured in the first game. Sergio was out for four months. Kevin (De Bruyne) was injured. (Ilkay) Gundogan came back from Covid.
“To play every three days you need the whole squad. To not have the whole squad is more difficult.”
Beginning of the end?
Aguero is arguably among the greatest Premier League forwards of all-time with the Argentine having the goals per minute ratio in the history of the competition.
However recent injury woes have put a question mark on the Argentine’s Premier League career who has entered the last 12 months of his contract with Manchester City.
Aguero missed 20 matches in City’s 2019-’20 campaign, the most he has missed in a single campaign since moving to Manchester. Since his knee injury in the 2017-’18 season, Aguero has constantly had troubles with injuries before he suffered another injury to his knee last season.
Aguero injury list
| Season | Injury | from | until | Days | Games missed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020-'21 | Knee Injury | Sep 12, 2020 | Oct 14, 2020 | 32 days | 5 |
| 2019-'20 | Knee Injury | Jun 23, 2020 | Jul 26, 2020 | 113 days | 13 |
| 2019-'20 | Muscle Injury | Nov 24, 2019 | Dec 20, 2019 | 26 days | 7 |
| 2018-'19 | Thigh Problems | Mar 31, 2019 | Apr 8, 2019 | 8 days | 2 |
| 2018-'19 | Groin Injury | Nov 30, 2018 | Dec 15, 2018 | 15 days | 6 |
| 2017-'18 | Knee Injury | Apr 13, 2018 | May 27, 2018 | 44 days | 6 |
| 2017-'18 | Knee Injury | Mar 11, 2018 | Apr 5, 2018 | 25 days | 3 |
| 2017-'18 | Fractured Rib | Sep 28, 2017 | Oct 14, 2017 | 16 days | 2 |
| 2016-'17 | Muscular problems | Aug 29, 2016 | Sep 12, 2016 | 14 days | 1 |
| 2015-'16 | Knock | Nov 30, 2015 | Dec 14, 2015 | 14 days | 4 |
| 2015-'16 | Hamstring Injury | Oct 12, 2015 | Nov 19, 2015 | 38 days | 7 |
| 2014-'15 | Ligament Injury | Dec 8, 2014 | Jan 8, 2015 | 31 days | 7 |
| 2013-'14 | Thigh Problems | Jun 26, 2014 | Jul 7, 2014 | 11 days | - |
| 2013-'14 | Knee Problems | Mar 13, 2014 | Mar 27, 2014 | 14 days | 3 |
| 2013-'14 | Hamstring Injury | Jan 30, 2014 | Feb 27, 2014 | 28 days | 5 |
| 2013-'14 | Calf Injury | Dec 16, 2013 | Jan 13, 2014 | 28 days | 8 |
Guardiola doubt
Even manager Pep Guardiola suggested that Aguero won’t be given a contract extension at Manchester City if he didn’t prove his worth to the club.
“We know what he means for us, we know how we appreciate him, but now he has to show like every one of us, me first, that we deserve to continue here and playing good and winning games,” Guardiola had said earlier this month on whether City are planning to extend Aguero’s contract beyond 2021.
While City have bitterly missed his presence up top, his latest injury could make City bosses think over handing the Argentine forward a contract extension.
Aguero has scored 255 goals in 372 matches for Manchester City and has won four Premier League titles with the club. He is also the top-scoring foreign player in the league and among the top five all-time scorers in Premier League history.
Premier League's all-time leading goalscorers
| Rank | Player | Goals | Apps | Ratio | Years | Clubs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alan Shearer | 260 | 441 | 0.59 | 1992–2006 | Blackburn Rovers Newcastle United |
| 2 | Wayne Rooney | 208 | 491 | 0.42 | 2002–2018 | Everton Manchester United |
| 3 | Andy Cole | 187 | 414 | 0.45 | 1993–2008 | Newcastle United Manchester United Blackburn Rovers Fulham Manchester City Portsmouth Sunderland |
| 4 | Sergio Agüero | 180 | 264 | 0.68 | 2011–Present | Manchester City |
| 5 | Frank Lampard | 177 | 609 | 0.29 | 1996–2015 | West Ham United Chelsea Manchester City |
Aguero has bossed Premier League defences for the last decade and even though he’s only 32, the physical demands of the league seem to be taking a toll on the Argentine. With City in need of a rebuild, the top bosses at the Etihad may look elsewhere for a player to lead the attack for Manchester City in the near future.
Aguero has been a great servant for Manchester City, but with his latest injury one wonders how long will he keep enthralling the Premier League audiences with his mazy skills and stunning goals.
(With AFP inputs)