Man City news: Sergio Aguero reveals how Pep Guardiola transformed his game over dinner

The Argentine found it tough to adjust initially but eventually thrived under the Spaniard

Jack Rathborn
Friday 11 October 2019 04:53 EDT
Comments
Pep Guardiola reacts to Manchester City's defeat by Wolves

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Sergio Aguero has revealed how Pep Guardiola transformed his game at Manchester City after having dinner with his manager upon his arrival.

The Argentine learned the intricacies of the system and his duties on the pitch, which were totally alien to what he had been accustomed to throughout his career.

Since Guardiola’s arrival in 2016, Aguero has scored 103 goals, thriving under the Spaniard, and now the striker has revealed how he was prepared to spearhead one of the greatest sides English football has ever seen.

“Pep asked me to try a new way of playing and I had to adapt. It wasn’t easy but I had no choice,” Aguero said in the new book Pep’s City: The Making of a Superteam, which is serialised in The Sun.

“My game is totally different now from what I was doing five years ago at City. A total transformation. At that meal, we talked about loads of things.

“We kept postponing it and then when we finally met up, we talked about work for 20 minutes or so. The rest of the meal we spent chatting about other stuff, family, life in general.”

Aguero ​admits the style of play was a shock to the system at first.

Guardiola gives Aguero instructions
Guardiola gives Aguero instructions (PA)

“When Pep arrived I was a bit taken aback by his intensity, it wasn’t always easy to understand what he wanted,” Aguero adds.

“With Pep, it can feel like he’s putting a lot of pressure on you. You start thinking, “I’ve got to play well” and only end up putting even more pressure on yourself.

“But I understood pretty quickly that’s just how he is. Pep is super intense. He won’t leave you alone for a second. There are no off days.”

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in