Manchester City vs. Hull: Breaking Down Sergio Aguero's Performance vs. Tigers

It’s been a difficult return from injury for Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero. After injuring his knee in the win over Everton in early December, he missed seven matches before returning to face the Toffees at Goodison Park in January. It's been a layoff that has badly affected his side.

His form has suffered greatly. Prior to that setback, he had hit a remarkable 19 in 20 games, putting last season’s injury troubles behind him and looking back to his very best.

His instincts in front of goal were razor sharp, his trademark blistering pace over the first 10 yards was back and he had the same air of confidence he had displayed throughout much of the first half of last season when he regularly terrorised defences.

Since his return, though, he’s yet to score in his five appearances, with his fleetness of foot and speed of thought not quite at the level they were before.

It hasn’t helped that City’s form collectively has been so poor in that time, losing two and drawing three, falling seven points off the pace at the top of the Premier League and exiting the FA Cup at the hands of lower-league opposition, but even in that context, it's clear Aguero has struggled to return to his previous level.

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The game against Hull City on Saturday appeared, on paper, to be the perfect game for him to get back some of the confidence he has been missing.

He was up against Michael Dawson, a player he has enjoyed a lot of success against in recent years when Dawson was a Tottenham player, and one he pulled all over the place at the KC Stadium earlier this season in City’s 4-2 win there.

Dawson isn’t the most mobile, and with Aguero’s pace and low centre of gravity, as well as his desire to try and take on defenders when he receives the ball, the Hull man has often seemed like the ideal opponent for the Argentine. He struggles to handle his movement, often dragged into areas he doesn’t want to be in, leaving space in behind which Aguero or his team-mates can exploit.

Saturday’s game was different, though. Aguero, because of his tentative return from injury and the ineptitude of his team-mates in getting the ball to him, was absent for long periods. A few driving runs suggested he is gaining some belief, but his touch was often heavy and he failed to really cause the Hull defenders any problems.

A moment of pure magic in the final moments of the game gave a rare glimpse of what he was producing prior to his knee injury. Samir Nasri, himself returning from a layoff, floated a ball towards the back post. Aguero controlled with his right before hitting a beautiful left-foot shot that crashed off the crossbar. Allan McGregor was beaten, but it was a couple of inches too high.

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It was a stunning piece of skill—the kind only the very best can produce—but it stood alone as the instance of real quality he produced. It will be high up Manuel Pellegrini’s list of priorities to make sure his star striker returns to his very best as soon as possible.

City got away with Aguero’s injury problems last season, just about getting over the line as Premier League champions, despite him missing 11 league matches through muscle injuries.

It seems unlikely now that will be repeated. City are seven points adrift of Chelsea with 14 games left to play. Jose Mourinho has already relinquished one sizable lead to City this season. It seems a stretch to think it will happen again.

Rob Pollard is Bleacher Report's lead Manchester City correspondent and will be following the club from a Manchester base throughout the 2014-15 season. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow him on Twitter: @RobPollard.