Tottenham and Arsenal tried to sign Premier League legend Sergio Aguero when his contract at Manchester City expired, the striker’s father told Radio la Red.
While reports linking Aguero to one of Manchester City’s top-flight rivals were immediately dismissed as idle paper talk in some quarters, it seems there was more to this than meets the eye.
At 33, and with a series of muscle injuries taking their toll on his ageing limbs, the five-time Premier League winner is not quite the irrepressible goal-scoring force he once was.
But absolutely nobody should be writing off a man whose instincts remain razor-sharp.
Tottenham, Arsenal and even Champions League winners Chelsea obviously felt that one of the greatest centre-forwards of the modern era still has a lot left to offer.
Did Arsenal and Tottenham miss out on a Premier League legend?
“Tottenham, Arsenal and Chelsea were interested in him until the last moment,” Aguero’s father explained after his son took a massive pay-cut to complete a £100,000-a-week move to La Liga giants Barcelona.
Aguero’s brother hit the headlines recently, claiming that Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola ‘never wanted’ the Argentine international at the Etihad.
And the striker’s father struck a similar tone, in quotes translated by Market Research Telecast.
“I did not believe in Guardiola’s tears,” he said. “For me he never wanted (Sergio).
“As Sergio said, the exit depended on the club and the coaching staff. Until the last moment he waited for the renewal with City.”
Aguero’s eventual move to Barcelona robbed Mikel Arteta of the chance to reunite with a man he worked with during his time as Guardiola’s assistant coach.
“His character, his personality: he’s a loveable man and then one of the best talents that I’ve seen,” Arteta told Football London in May.
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