Sergio Aguero Can Only Progress Further After Premier League Century
Sergio Aguero showed a different side to his game during Manchester City's 3-0 away win over Southampton but, on his 100th Premier League appearance, continued the form that outlines how he can only make further progress at Manchester City.
In a crucial top-four clash, City lined up in a 4-2-3-1 formation with Aguero at its spearhead.
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With Joe Hart in goal, a back four of Pablo Zabaleta, Vincent Kompany, Eliaquim Mangala and Gael Clichy sat behind Yaya Toure and Fernandinho, while Samir Nasri, Stevan Jovetic and Jesus Navas supported Aguero.
Nasri joined Aguero in reaching 100 Premier League appearances for the club.
"Both Sergio Aguero and Samir Nasri make their 100th Premier League appearances for Man City this afternoon. #MCFC pic.twitter.com/tz73TqVvap
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) November 30, 2014"
After scoring 12 goals in 12 league games, Aguero registered two assists at St. Mary's but failed to hit the back of the net.
He provided Yaya Toure and Gael Clichy with strikes, which bookended a goal from loanee Frank Lampard, as the Citizens made a big step toward challenging Chelsea for the league title.
Aguero will be crucial to that. By his standards, he arguably underperformed on Sunday, but both the striker and his club must retain their loyalty in order for the player to continue to flourish.
With City, Aguero has found the perfect base to hone his talents, and the side must be built around his goals for many years to come.
Introduction to the Premier League
Starting how he intended to go on, Aguero scored twice on his Premier League debut and provided David Silva with another in City's 4-0 rout of Swansea City in August 2011.
After the game, then-manager Roberto Mancini said to reporters, per The Guardian's Daniel Taylor: "He's a fantastic striker and I still don't think he's 100 per cent yet because he has been training with us for only 10 days."
Mancini added that: "[Aguero] can improve."
Costing the club £38 million and arriving with a strong reputation from his time with Atletico Madrid, City would have hoped for a strong start, but the way in which Aguero established himself so quickly was surely unexpected.
The Argentine scored 22 goals in 33 league appearances before his decisive final-day contribution.
Aguero sealed his first season at the club with a late winner against Queens Park Rangers—a goal that gave City their first Premier League title. Commentator Martin Tyler's reaction ensured Aguero became a Manchester City immortal.
City's No. 16 is a rare breed whose form never truly seems to dip, although this may be alleviated by continued injury struggles for the striker.
This season, however, Aguero has remained injury free, and he is dominating oppositions on a regular basis as a result.
Southampton 2014/15 Form
Aguero's performance at St. Mary's was in danger of being marred by an early yellow card—wrongly awarded for what referee Mike Jones believed to be a dive—as a solid Southampton defence held on; Toby Alderweireld was particularly impressive in the first half.
After the break, however, Aguero began to shine.
His decision-making was impeccable; the striker decided against cutting inside for a shot on 51 minutes, instead teeing up Toure with great composure.
The Ivorian gleefully took the opportunity to score his third league goal this season.
Aguero added another assist late on, laying a pass across to Clichy, who fired past a sprawling Fraser Forster. However, it was the striker's all-round play that truly stood out.
This was clearest when James Milner replaced Jovetic on 55 minutes, with Aguero coming deeper to receive the ball and recycle possession.
Pellegrini will be pleased but not surprised by this performance, after stating, per the Manchester Evening News: "I am sure he is in the top five [players in the world]. I don’t think he is better than Cristiano [Ronaldo] or [Lionel] Messi, but he must be very near because he has all the conditions to do it."
The manager's comments came off the back of Aguero's hat-trick against Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Tuesday—a performance that reaffirmed his world-class pedigree.
Aguero has now scored five goals in as many appearances in that competition, adding to his 12 in 13 in the Premier League in 2014/15, and he is looking unstoppable at present.
Underlining this devastating spell, Southampton manager Ronald Koeman compared Aguero to legendary Brazil striker Romario, per the Daily Mail:
"Sometimes you think he's sleeping then in one split second he's scoring. It's a big quality. ... It's one of the best players, the player who makes the difference between winning and not winning for City. They have a strong squad, good players, but in the last few games Aguero makes difference.
"
This echoes Mancini, who told BBC Sport in 2011 that "Sergio is a photocopy of Romario, they are the same player."
At this juncture, Aguero is operating at a much higher level to his City team-mates and will be paramount to their success this season.
The Fear of Replacement
City needed this quality against Bayern and Southampton, with Aguero's instincts dragging his side to victory.
His contributions keep City in with a chance of qualifying for the knockout stages of the Champions League—something Nasri believes to be integral to the squad's future.
Per The Guardian, the midfielder said:
"Let’s be honest, with the salary of every player and the level of those players, 90 per cent of the team is world class, then not to qualify from the first round of the Champions League would be a huge blow for the club.
We need to do something or otherwise next year it is going to be new players, it’s going to be everything.
"
Nasri was replaced by Lampard at St. Mary's on Sunday, and his ineffective performance and inconsistent displays in the No. 8 shirt this season could make him one of the prime candidates for being replaced in the team permanently.
Elsewhere, Navas continued to frustrate on the right wing, while Mangala's red card sees the centre-back's early woes continue after his BBC Sport-reported £32 million summer signing.
Aguero, on the other hand, is arguably irreplaceable and, scarily, can still improve.
As Samir Nasri suggests, Manchester City will undoubtedly continue their cyclical replacement of struggling and out-of-favour players in the years ahead, but one constant will remain in Sergio Aguero.
Statistics via WhoScored.com.
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