PEP SO THIN UP TOP
At least City boss has Laporte in an injury storm
PLENTY TO PONDER: Pep Guardiola
SERGIO AGUERO will have to prove his body can withstand the rigours of the toughest season in football history to earn himself a contract extension at Manchester City.
No one would pension off such a lethal predator without very good reason but with Aguero turning 33 in June when his current deal expires, doubts over his durability are surfacing.
The latest injury setback for the Argentine, coupled with the absence of Gabriel Jesus, has left City without a recognised central striker for tonight’s Champions League tie in Marseille.
City boss Pep Guardiola doesn’t have the ultimate say in giving Aguero another contract but he would dearly love him to be making an unanswerable case to the club’s money men, rather than being back on the treatment table.
“What I want is Sergio to be fit. For himself, for him to enjoy playing football and after, the consequences of this will dictate the future,” said Guardiola.
“What Sergio has done in this club is outstanding. He will be absolutely a legend of this club and I want to enjoy him more.
“But it depends on his physical condition. We have missed him for a long time in this last part of the year and hopefully he can come back and be fit as much as possible.”
Guardiola did confirm last night
City had toyed with the idea of signing an additional the summer.
“We considered it,” he said. “We talked about maybe another type of striker but we could not.
“When we decide to buy a striker, it has to be a striker on the level of Gabriel and Sergio and you cannot afford it. That is a reality.”
Hindsight is of no use now as City find themselves having to make do and mend with the collateral damage of a congested fixture list weighing heavily on Guardiola’s mind.
He said: “Yesterday everyone got the statistics that in the Premier League, there have been 47 per cent more muscular injuries than last year in the same period.
“It is the same everywhere. If the people can reflect on this, we will be able to protect the players in future. If they don’t, it will increase.
“We have to striker in protect the players as much as possible. The strongest ones will survive while the other ones will fall down.”
There is one piece of good news for City tonight with the return of Aymeric Laporte to their defence. Andre Villas- Boas’ side are unbeaten domestically but their Champions League return after seven years began badly with an injury- time defeat to Olympiacos. City have yet to get going in the Premier League but in Europe started with a 3- 1 victory over Porto.