Pep Guardiola: Manchester City couldn't afford Sergio Aguero back-up
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Published 27/10/2020 at 09:59 GMT
Sergio Aguero is set to miss up to three weeks with a muscle problem, having started the season already injured, and Pep Guardiola has admitted that the Manchester City hierarchy considered buying a new striker in the summer but were prevented from doing so by financial contraints.
Pep Guardiola and Sergio Aguero
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Pep Guardiola has claimed that he wanted to buy a new striker to play understudy for Sergio Aguero but could not afford to do so in the summer transfer window.
Aguero picked up an injury at the tail-end of last season and returned against Arsenal nine days ago, but has since suffered a set-back and will be out for up to three weeks.
With Gabriel Jesus also injured, City are short of attacking options and Guardiola has claimed that financial constraints prevented him from picking up a new striker in a summer in which they spent big on defenders Ruben Dias and Nathan Ake, and winger Ferran Torres.
"Sergio was injured in the last game, muscular. When you are out for four or five months with a knee problem you always have a risk when you come back," said Guardiola.
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"We tried to handle it as much as possible, just 50-55 minutes every game. But it was not possible. It depends on the injury. We expect 10-15 days for sure minimum, or it could be three weeks or a month."
When asked whether he wanted to sign a new striker in the summer, he replied: "We considered it and thought about it, and another type of striker, but we could not.
"It's not a club that wants revenues at the end of the year, it's what they want and what's best for the team. You know when you decide to buy a striker they have to be at the level of Aguero and Jesus and we could not afford it. This is the reality.
"I'm not saying the club didn't want to do it, not just in terms of strikers but in every position, but they wanted to make as strong a team as possible to make more games and better. But we thought 'OK, Sergio is back and we didn't expect Gabriel to be injured'. Sometimes it happens."
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