Guardiola urges Aguero to prove his worth for Manchester City

Pep Guardiola admits that even Sergio Aguero, like everybody else, must prove his worth to Manchester City as his contract winds down.

A fourth-month spell on the sidelines ended on Saturday when Aguero started in Manchester City’s 1-0 win over Arsenal.

The striker, who has just recovered from a knee injury, played a part in the build-up to Raheem Sterling’s match-winning goal. Otherwise, it was a relatively low-key return on the pitch. Pep eventually replaced him with Ilkay Gundogan at the 65th-minute.

“The important thing is that Sergio comes back in good physical condition, starts to get his rhythm, doesn’t get more injuries and plays good,” said Guardiola as quoted on The Telegraph.

Aguero has been at the Etihad Stadium since 2011 and helped City win four Premier League titles. He’s also the club’s record goalscorer on a staggering 254 goals in 371 appearances across all competitions.

But even the 32-year-old, widely regarded as one of the best players in the last decade in England, must prove he deserves a new contract.

His current deal will expire at the end of this season.

Guardiola added: “We know what he means for us, we know how we appreciate him, but now he has to show like every one of us, me first, that we deserve to continue here and playing good and winning games.

“After that, the club and myself of course decide, but about his quality… when he is playing in his level and we don’t have any doubts he is a player to stay until he decides (to go) because he is unique, the numbers, he is important for us, the fans and for everyone.”