Sergio Aguero has explained that Pep Guardiola's strict fitness regime saw him lose his place at Manchester City and called "fat" by the club's boss.
The Argentine striker played under Guardiola at Manchester City for five seasons before his exit in 2021, when his contract at the club was not renewed. Aguero started more than 25 Premier League matches in just one of those seasons and despite having injury problems, often had to be content with a place on the bench when fit.
The frontman played only a bit-part role at the club last season, featuring in just 12 league matches and often being isolated with Guardiola opting not to play with a striker. The signing of Gabriel Jesus in January 2017 was the only natural striker to arrive at the Etihad during Guardiola's reign and in Aguero's final two seasons at City, the Brazilian was often preferred in attack.
The Argentine subsequently penned a contract with Barcelona but was forced into early retirement due to health issues last season when he had to come off just 42 minutes into his first home start for Barcelona against Alaves in October and was taken to hospital with breathing difficulties. The former City star was visibly struggling towards the end of the first half, laying down after clashing with an opponent in the penalty area.
Aguero discussed Guardiola's fitness regime on El Chiringuito's Twitch channel, saying: "If your ideal weight is 79-80kg and you were 80 kilos and 100 grams you would be fined and you would not play. But it can happen! You come across a little bit of chicken for example then you are going to be 50 grams over!"
The striker admitted that he fell foul of the lack of flexibility on body weight: "Well the first season we were between fourth and third and he said, 'I left you out because you turned up fat this week'. And what was I going to say? He was right… these things happen.
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"He said it in a good way. And at this time I didn't really have his confidence. But I was always very respectful to the coaches."
But of course, it was not just Aguero's weight that did not naturally click with Guardiola, but his style of play too: "When I arrived, Guardiola asked me to press the centre backs a lot, and then I didn't have oxygen to attack. I wasn't used to pressing but Guardiola taught me the way to do it."
Aguero won a total of 15 trophies with the Manchester club across a glittering decade in English football, including winning five Premier League titles. The striker provided the most iconic moment of the club's history and arguably that of the Premier League when his last-gasp winner against Queen's Park Rangers in the 2011-12 campaign secured the league title – the club's first in 44 years.
Aguero also won a Premier League Golden Boot, was twice included in the PFA Team of the Year, and holds the record for most Premier League hat-tricks with twelve.
