Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero has said that surgery on his knee on Wednesday ‘went well’, with the Argentine hoping to begin his recovery process soon. However, it remains unclear whether he will play again this season.
Already feeling pain, Aguero suffered a knock during City’s 5-0 win over Burnley on Monday night. He underwent a scan and was assessed by specialist Dr Ramon Cugat in Barcelona.
Dr Cugat is the preferred surgeon of City boss Pep Guardiola and has operated on Kevin De Bruyne, Fernandinho, Aymeric Laporte, Ilkay Gundogan and Benjamin Mendy. Guardiola himself has also gone under the Spaniard’s knife in the past, as have many Barcelona players.
Taking to social media after the surgery, Aguero tweeted a picture of himself from his hospital bed alongside the caption: “Everything went well, and I'll soon begin recovery. A big thanks to Dr Cugat and his team – and to all of you for your support.”
Todo salió bien y pronto comenzaré con la recuperación. Muchas gracias al Dr. Cugat y a su equipo y a todos por tanto apoyo//Everything went well, and I'll soon begin recovery. A big thanks to Dr Cugat and his team – and to all of you for your support ?? pic.twitter.com/Frm07cN3WF
— Sergio Kun Aguero (@aguerosergiokun) June 24, 2020
Estimates of a six-week layoff for such an injury have already begun circulating, which would rule Aguero out for the remainder of the 2019/20 Premier League season, which is currently scheduled to finish on 26 July – only a month away.
City will resume their Champions League campaign in early August, with the four-time Premier League champions holding a 2-1 aggregate advantage in their last 16 tie against Real Madrid.
It may be touch and go as to whether Aguero would be fit in time for the return leg, but if City hold on to their advantage and progress he could yet play in the later rounds.
Guardiola is already ruing the impact, with Aguero needing to build up match fitness that will be lost during his absence. It means even back on the pitch he will struggle to be at peak condition.
“Of course the impact is big; to win the Champions League you have to arrive in the best moment, in the best condition as possible, but at the same time the situation is what it is,” Guardiola explained as he (remotely) faced the media this week.
“Sometimes when this happens teams make a step forward with other players to solve situations, so that is what we have to do. Hopefully he can help us against Real Madrid – and if we’re good enough to go through, maybe [too] for the next rounds.”
The other side of this injury could see Aguero not finish a season as City top scorer for the first time since 2011, before the Argentine joined the club. He was joint top scorer with Carlos Tevez in 2012/13 but has been outright top scorer for City in seven other seasons.
Aguero is currently City’s leading marksman in 2019/20 with 23 goals in all competitions, but Raheem Sterling is only two behind and could overtake Aguero in the latter's absence.
City play again on Thursday night when they face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
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Source : 90min