Aguero debut lifts hopes for Barca attack
Sergio Aguero is set to make his Barcelona debut at home to Valencia in La Liga tomorrow and the Catalans will be hoping the prolific Argentine can lift their spirits after a dismal start to the season.
Aguero joined Barca on a free transfer in the close-season after a trophyladen decade with Manchester City in which he became the fourth leading scorer in Premier League history and struck 260 times to become the club’s all-time top scorer.
But the excitement of his arrival was quickly overshadowed by Lionel Messi’s shock departure in August, which was soon followed by Aguero, a close friend of the former captain, injuring a calf muscle.
He resumed full training this week and is expected to be on the bench when Barca host Valencia looking to respond to their 2-0 defeat at Atletico Madrid before the international break.
Aguero’s return comes at an ideal time for Ronald Koeman’s Barca, who had only one win in their last six games in all competitions and failed to score in four of them.
Aguero, meanwhile, has his own point to prove after struggling with fitness problems for most of the last 12 months, in which he had to endure eight setbacks including two knee injuries and a long period out due to coronavirus.
The 33-year-old also expected to be playing with Messi and in a side challenging for the title rather than in one that is ninth in the table — five points behind leaders Real Madrid with a game in hand — and bottom of their Champions League group.
After Valencia, Barca face Dynamo Kiev in the Champions League on Wednesday before hosting Real Madrid in the first Clasico of the season four days later.
Real Madrid and second-placed Atletico are not playing after their matches were postponed due to La Liga’s rift with Fifa over South America’s World Cup qualifiers. REUTERS