AGUEROOOOOOO!
It was a day to live long in the memory of every City fan – but where are the 2012 title-winning heroes now?
YESTERDAY marked the anniversary of arguably the most precious day in City’s history.
A last-gasp 3-2 victory over QPR proved to be one of the most dramatic Premier League title-winning moments, and eight years on supporters still revel in getting one up on local rivals United in such fashion.
From Martin Tyler’s famous commentary to Roberto Mancini’s flailing limbs, there are so many reasons why City fans won’t be forgetting that day any time soon.
This is what each member of City’s starting XI from that famous 3-2 win are doing now...
■ GK - JOE HART
THE goalkeeper’s time at City is complicated when you consider how good he once was between the sticks.
Since leaving City, Hart has struggled to emulate form anywhere near the level he showed under Mancini and Pellegrini. He is widely expected to move on from Burnley this summer with first-team opportunities scarce.
■ RB - PABLO ZABALETA
THE fan favourite eventually moved on in 2017 when he joined West Ham. A move elsewhere in the Premier League is one that few City fans would have expected but he has continued to ply his trade at the top level, albeit to a less adventurous extent than his City days.
Zabaleta recently admitted that he could retire at the end of the current season.
■ CB - VINCENT KOMPANY
THIS season has been City’s first without Kompany since he arrived at the Etihad Stadium in 2008.
His leadership qualities have been missed throughout the current campaign as he has taken up a player-manager role with Anderlecht in the Belgian top division.
The former City captain stepped down from his matchday duties, leaving the in-game tactical and substitution decisions to ex-City academy chief Simon Davies before Franky Vercauteren was brought in to steady the ship.
■ CB - JOLEON LESCOTT
THE centre-back departed from the Etihad at the end of the 2013/14 season and went on to have unsuccessful spells at West Brom, Aston Villa and Sunderland.
Since retiring in 2017, Lescott has been a regular figure in the media as well as returning to City as a loan coach.
■ LB - GAEL CLICHY
CLICHY has been playing for Istanbul Basaksehir in the Turkish league since 2017 where he is joined by some familiar names.
Robinho, Demba Ba and Martin Skrtel have all represented the club this season which shows them to be a side with vast Premier League experience. Now 34, Clichy has not yet indicated any plans to call quits on his playing career.
■ RM - SAMIR NASRI
NASRI’S post-City days seem to have been quite a rollercoaster with a number of off-the-field issues dominating his time in the papers rather than anything he was doing on the pitch. The Frenchman now plays alongside Kompany once again at Anderlecht, where he has made eight appearances so far this season after a free transfer from
West Ham in July proved to be the end of his time in English football.
■ CM - YAYA TOURE
TOURE is probably one of the most iconic players in City’s recent history and isn’t yet confirmed as retired at the age of 36.
He signed for Qingdao Huanghai in the China League One in 2019 and helped them earn promotion to the Chinese Super League before departing at the end of his contract.
The Ivorian has yet to make an announcement about his next step in football.
■ CM - GARETH BARRY
BARRY left the club in 2014 and moved to fellow Premier League side Everton before joining West
Brom three years later.
While at the Baggies, Barry broke the record for most Premier League appearances of alltime, with his total currently sitting at 653. The 39-year-old is still enjoying life at the Hawthorns.
■ LM - DAVID SILVA
THERE’S little to say about Silva other than he’s continuing to provide flair and creative spark in the final third for City, even in the twilight of his career.
The 34-year-old looks set to leave the club this summer and replacing such a reliable player from the last decade will be a tough task.
■ ST - CARLOS TEVEZ
THE Argentine joined Boca
Juniors in 2018 on a free transfer after spells in China and Italy after leaving the Blues.
The 36-year-old’s contract is due to expire this summer, leading many to speculate that he will call it a day.
■ ST - SERGIO AGUERO THERE’S not much to say about Sergio Aguero that hasn’t already been said. The Argentine is the all-time record goalscorer in City’s history.
His goals in the 2011/12 season helped lead the club to their first Premier League title and he recently passed the 250 mark for City back in January.
He will no doubt go down as one of, if not the, greatest Premier League goalscorers.