Aguero to play backup role at Barca following move from City

James Holland
Sergio Aguero Barcelona F365

Manchester City legend Sergio Aguero will reportedly play a backup role at Barcelona next term.

The striker spent 11 trophy-laden years in Manchester, winning the Premier League five times and the FA Cup once.

He is fourth in the all-time Premier League goalscoring charts with 184 strikes in 275 appearances.


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Despite his incredible record, Barca have warned Aguero that he could spend a significant amount of time on the bench next season.

That’s according to Spanish outlet AS (via Daily Mail), who claim that the Argentinian has already accepted the role.

Barca are worried about Aguero’s fitness after he was limited to 12 top flight appearances in 2020/21.

He suffered with a knee injury at the start of the campaign, a hamstring problem in November and was also affected by coronavirus in January.

Boss Ronald Koeman is supposedly prioritising youngster Ansu Fati up front. The 18-year-old, who can also operate as a left winger, has a bright future after coming through the club’s famed La Masia academy.

He’s already notched 11 goals in his first 31 La Liga matches.

Koeman can also use Antoine Griezmann to spearhead his attack. The Frenchman got off to a slow start in Catalonia but managed 20 goals in all competitions last season.

However, he may be targeted by City to replace Aguero at the Etihad due to Barca’s financial situation. They need to offload players in order to get under their wage cap and tie Lionel Messi down to a new deal.

Memphis Depay is another option at Koeman’s disposal. The Dutch international was announced as a Barca player in June after running down his contract with Lyon.

Reports have already revealed the significant pay cut Aguero had to take to join the Catalan giants.

He was willing to lose out on €17m per year to play alongside friend Messi at the Nou Camp.

Barca have made moves to reduce their wage bill in recent weeks. Left-back Junior Firpo has signed for Leeds United.

The 24-year-old was targeted by a number of Spanish clubs but was enticed by Marcelo Bielsa’s ‘special’ project.

Midfielder Carles Alena has also left for Getafe, for a fee believed to be in the region of €5m. Barca have first refusal on the player and a sell-on clause.