AGUERO’S BEST PAL IS...DE GEA
SERGIO AGUERO, the man who broke Manchester United’s domination of the title, has revealed his best mate for hanging out in the city is archrival David De Gea.
Blue Moon legend Aguero’s 94th-minute winner on the last day of the season in 2012 conferred immortality on the Argentine striker.
Aguero has kept every shirt whenever he has scored for City, inscribing each with the date and time of his goals... and, after a record 201 goals for the club to date, there is a huge pile of shirts in a walk-in wardrobe at his Cheshire home.
But fans on both sides of the Manchester divide will be surprised to learn the player with whom he socialises most is United keeper De Gea (above).
Aguero, whose son Benjamin lives with his mother in Argentina and visits him for one week every month, explained: “I hang out a JOHN STONES has cut down on his mistakes and the England defender’s game has become almost blunder-free, says Manchester City messiah Pep Guardiola.
Stones, 24, endured a difficult first season at the Etihad and his £47.5million price tag – the second most expensive transfer fee paid by a British club at the time – fitted him like a ball and chain.
But either side of a hamstring injury, Stones (above) made an impressive contribution to City’s record 100-point haul as they romped to the title by 19 points. lot with David because we played together for Atletico Madrid.
“We have a good friendship from Atletico... but he now plays for United and I play for City.”
Aguero, 30, reveals in the City documentary ‘All Or Nothing’ that he spends much of his down-time watching action movies or mafia films on his home-cinema system, and there is also a trophy room containing the 12 match-balls commemorating his dozen hat-tricks for the club.
He said of his shirt collection: “I write the date, the match and the minute of the goal.” Aguero’s City treasure trove dates back to scoring twice on his debut in a 4-0 win against Swansea in 2011, but he has not always taken to English football like a duck to orange sauce.
He said: “The first season I really suffered. We played in the snow – it was horrible. There was ice on my face, and I almost asked to be subbed off. My hands hurt, my face, everything.” Guardiola said: “He has improved in terms of paying more attention to things like food and rest, and he has reduced a lot his defensive mistakes.
“Last year, there was maybe two or three actions in a game, but this season he has reduced that to one, or maybe zero.”
Stones said: “There was no pressure (from the price tag), just the joy of being here and the start of a new chapter for me as a player and as a person.
“Mistakes happen in football, and for me, personally, I had to review and analyse everything, and be self-critical, so you can move on and learn from it.”