How Manchester City Can Get the Best out of Sergio Aguero in 2015/16

In among the disappointments and lacklustre displays last season, Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero underlined his class, scoring 32 goals in all competitions and winning the Premier League’s Golden Boot award.

Given Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are widely considered the best two players on the planet—perhaps in the history of the game—Aguero is now regularly spoken about as the best of the rest. There seems little doubt that, along with Barcelona’s Luis Suarez, he is the finest out-and-out striker in world football.

He is without question the best striker in the club’s history—the fastest to 100 goals—and, at just 27, he has a real chance of becoming the highest goalscorer to ever wear a City shirt. He has 107 in just 162 appearances. Eric Book, City’s record scorer, managed 178 in 496 games.

The accuracy of his finishing remains remarkable to witness. Precision is key. He boasted a better goals-per-minute ratio in last season’s Champions League than any of Suarez, Neymar, Messi and Ronaldo, further highlighting the need for City to improve their European performance in order to satisfy their star striker.

His 21 goals in 23 games against the other “Big Six” sides in the Premier League over the past three seasons demonstrates his ability to score in the big games. Like all great players, Aguero thrives on being the man for the big occasion.

But how do City get the best out of him next season?

The most important thing is to keep him fit. Aguero has continually missed games in recent seasons because of muscle problems. They subsided somewhat during the last campaign, with an unfortunate knee injury sustained against Everton in December culpable for his longest absence, but the club are acutely aware they must find a solution to the niggling hamstring and calf injuries that have previously held him back. 

Manuel Pellegrini, the City manager, and his medical team deserve huge credit for the way in which they have handled Aguero over the past 12 months. During City’s title-winning 2013/14 season, Aguero missed 15 league matches and went to last summer’s World Cup in Brazil looking distinctly unfit having been troubled by a hamstring problem since City’s win away at Tottenham Hotspur the previous January.

He was eased into the 2014/15 campaign slowly. Goals against Liverpool and Newcastle United as a substitute in the opening two matches saw fans grow restless and want Aguero thrown in more regularly. But Pellegrini’s softly-softly approach paid dividends. He played 33 league matches—ten more than in the previous campaign.

City also need to find the right players to complement him. They lacked pace in attacking areas last season, which is why Raheem Sterling, the Liverpool winger-cum-forward, would be an excellent addition. 

If Pellegrini decides to continue with the 4-2-3-1 formation he ended the last campaign with, a mixture of players with guile, such as David Silva, and players with speed, such as Sterling, are essential to maximising Aguero's quality. 

The Argentinian is at his best when he plays high up the pitch, on the shoulder of the last defender, ready to come alive in the final third and demonstrate his killer instinct. Finding the right blend of attributes to support him in a system that demands he plays up front on his own is vitally important. 

However, the option of playing 4-4-2 remains on the table—given Wilfried Bony's arrival in January. Bony's impact has been reduced because of his Africa Cup of Nations involvement, a couple of injuries and City's switch to one striker in the final run of matches. 

But there's a feeling at City he will play a more prominent role next season. He showed signs of his quality in his cameo appearances in the final weeks of last season, with his hold-up play and ability to link up with those around him particularly impressive. 

He could be the perfect foil for Aguero given the chance. 

Natacha Pisarenko/Associated Press

Given his injury record, managing his game time correctly is essential. City will desperately be trying to concoct a plan that allows him to play as often as possible at 100 per cent fitness. It'll be particularly important given he is, once again, involved in a summer tournament in South America, currently representing Argentina at the Copa America in Chile. 

And finding players that alleviate some of the goalscoring burden on Aguero is also of the utmost importance. City were too reliant on his goals in the 2014/15 season. 

Rob Pollard is Bleacher Report's lead Manchester City correspondent and follows the club from a Manchester base. All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow him on Twitter: @RobPollard.