Aguero future in doubt as City eye early Sanchez deal
As Manchester City ponder whether to bring forward plans to sign Alexis Sanchez, Sergio Aguero has plunged his own future at the club into fresh doubt by admitting he could be sold in the summer.
City’s hierarchy are holding a transfer meeting this week to determine whether to sign Sanchez from Arsenal this month in the wake of Gabriel Jesus’s knee injury.
A move for a centre-back was also high on the agenda, with Real Sociedad’s Inigo Martinez, West Bromwich Albion defender Jonny Evans and Barcelona defender Samuel Umtiti on their radar after Virgil van Dijk joined Liverpool.
Aguero said he hoped to see out the remaining 2½ years on his contract at City but could not be sure what the summer would bring, in remarks echoing comments he made in February last year, when he first suggested his future was dependent on the club’s wishes. “I have until 2020, I think,” Aguero said when asked about his future in another vague reference to the length of his contract. “The truth is I hope to see out my contract and
I’ll try to do my best from here until the end of the season, and after that we will see what happens with me.” Asked if he wanted to stay at City, Aguero added: “Yes, for me, yes. Obviously my plan is not to change clubs. The truth is I’m very happy here but, as always, as I said before, the club has the last word. “They’re the only ones who decide because, obviously, the club is the one who makes the decisions. They are the ones who say you have to go or have to stay, so I’ll respect whatever they tell me.” Aguero has become increasingly disillusioned about life under Pep Guardiola and where he fits in the manager’s long-term plans and the situation is likely to come to a head if City land Sanchez. City’s preference has been to wait until the summer to sign the Chilean on a free transfer amid concern about disrupting the balance and harmony of the team as the runaway leaders hone in on the title.
But, with Jesus unlikely to be back until mid-february, and possibly later after the Brazil forward suffered medial collateral knee ligament damage, City are weighing up whether to make a cash bid for Sanchez now. Guardiola claimed last month Aguero would decide his own future but Aguero has now contradicted those claims and is worried that he is being squeezed out by the Catalan.