Man City legend and all-time top scorer Sergio Aguero has revealed that current boss Pep Guardiola dropped him because the striker was too fat during the early stages of the coach’s tenure.
Aguero joined City in 2011 from Spanish giants Atletico Madrid for a reported fee of £35million, and went on to become arguably the Club’s greatest ever player.
The Argentine netted 260 goals and provided a further 73 assists in 390 appearances for Man City, before leaving at the end of the 2020/2021 campaign. Aguero holds the record for the most goals scored by a non-English player in the Premier League, ahead of the likes of Thierry Henry and Robin Van Persie.
The former Atletico star has won five PL titles, and will forever be synonymous with the moment that sealed Man City their first crown in 2012, scoring a last-gasp winner against QPR to snatch the league away from their rivals Man United.
But Aguero recently revealed that he found himself on the bench during Pep Guardiola’s early days in Manchester due to weight issues.
The retired striker explained how Pep had strict rules on dieting and weight, in order to ensure peak performance.
“If your ideal weight is 79-80kg and you were 80 kilos and 100 grams you would be fined and you don’t play,’ said Aguero on Spanish TV show El Chiringuito’s live stream.
“But it can happen! You come across a little bit of chicken for example then you are going to be 50 grams over!
“Well in the first season we were between fourth and third and he said ‘I left you out because you turned up fat this week’. And what was I going to say? He was right… these things happen.
“He said it in a good way. And at this time I didn’t really have his confidence. But I was always very respectful to the coaches.”
Aguero and Pep didn’t seem to be on the same page with regards to the role the coach wanted the Argentine to perform. This, as well as weight issues, saw Aguero dropped to the bench for large parts of the opening stages of Guardiola’s time at City.
However, Aguero explained how working with Pep helped him regain his rightful spot, leading the line for the Citizens.
“When I arrived, Guardiola asked me to press the centre backs a lot and then I didn’t have oxygen to attack,” added the former Barcelona forward.
“I wasn’t used to press but Guardiola taught me the way to do it.”
Aguero had already somewhat achieved legendary status on the blue half on Manchester prior to Pep’s arrival, due to his exploits in winning their first league title since 1968. But the former Bayern Munich coach emphasized the importance of the correct nutrition and weight, and didn’t hesitate to drop Aguero when the striker failed to meet the necessary requirements.
With the game becoming a lot more physical in terms of athleticism, Guardiola was correct to instil these principles into his players. No one benefitted more than Aguero himself, who went on to win three more league titles under the legendary coach’s tutelage.
