Sergio Aguero

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Personal

Professional

Club

Atletico Madrid

Independiente

Argentina

Fun Facts

1) He’s commonly known by the childhood nickname ‘Kun’, given to Aguero by his grandparents on account of his resemblance to this ’70s Japanese cartoon character Kum Kum.

2) He started his footballing career at Argentine side Independeinte, and broke Diego Maradaona’s record for being the youngest person ever to play in the country’s top flight after making his debut against San Lorenzo aged just 15 years and 35 days.

“I was a lot younger and smaller than most of the players, so I had to learn how to avoid and dodge aggressive tackles,” remembers Aguero of the experience.

3) His impressive return of 23 goals in 53 league appearances for Independiente attracted the attention of Europe’s top scouts, and Aguero was eventually signed by Atletico Madrid in May 2006 for 20m – the club’s record transfer fee. Here’s a compilation of his Top 10 goals from Argentina:

4) He made his La Liga debut for Atletico against Racing Santander on August 27, 2006 and scored his first league goal for the club against Bilbao the following month. Despite going on to make 38 appearances that season, Aguero struggled to shine while playing in the shadow Atletico’s star striker Fernando Torres, and only scored another five goals.

5) He showed his true form following Torres’ departure to Liverpool, however, forming a lethal partnership with his replacement, former Manchester United striker Diego Forlan, and finishing the 2007/08 as La Liga’s third highest goalscorer with 19 goals. Bolton fans may also remember him for being red-carded in their UEFA Cup meeting at the Reebok Stadium.

6) He’s won the FIFA U-20 World Cup twice with Argentina, first in 2005, when he played alongside Lionel Messi, and then again in 2007, when he captained the side and scored in the final. Aguero also took home the Golden Boot forbeing the tournament’s top scorer with six goals.

7) He made his senior debut for Argentina in the friendly against Brazil played at Arsenal’s Emirates stadium in September 2006. He’s since won a total of 15 caps and scored five goals, including two in Argentina’s 2008 Olympics semi-final win over Brazil.

He goes out with one of Diego Maradona’s daughters Giannina (pictured with her father below). The couple’s first child Leonel is named after Barcelona’s Lionel Messi, Aguero’s best mate.

9) He’s regarded as one of Argentina’s brightest talents, and here’s a taste of what Premier League fans can expect should he eventually end up at United or Chelsea.

Awards

Club

Atlético Madrid

* UEFA Europa League: 2010

Country

Argentina

* FIFA U-20 World Cup: 2005, 2007
* Summer Olympic Games: 2008

Individual

* FIFA Young Player of the Year: 2007
* FIFA U-20 World Cup Top Scorer: 2007
* FIFA U-20 World Cup Player of the Tournament: 2007
* Tuttosport Golden Boy: 2007[23][24]
* Don Balón Award (Best Foreign Player in La Liga): 2007–08
* EFE Trophy Award (Best Ibero-American Player in La Liga): 2007–08
* Bravo Award (U-21 European Footballer of the Year): 2009

Biography

Agüero was born in Quilmes, Buenos Aires on 2 June 1988 into a large family with seven children. Agüero started playing football at a young age and he often played on a pitch in his local neighbourhood, Villa Itali.

On 19 February 2009, it was announced that Agüero’s fiancée, Giannina Maradona, the younger daughter of Argentine football legend Diego Maradona, had given birth to a son named Benjamin in Madrid. Maradona was in the Spanish capital for the birth of his first grandson, while Agüero, 20, missed Atlético’s training session earlier in the day. Atlético offered their congratulations in a statement on their official website.

Agüero has a tattoo on the inside of his right arm, inscribed in Tengwar—a form of writing invented by J. R. R. Tolkien that was used by the Elves in his works. It translates roughly to Kun Agüero in the Latin alphabet.

Club career

Independiente

Sergio Agüero started playing for Argentine first division Club Club Atlético Independiente, becoming the youngest player to debut in the Argentine First Division at 15 years and 35 days (on 7 July 2003 against Club Atlético San Lorenzo de Almagro), breaking the record previously established by Diego Maradona in 1976.

Atlético Madrid

In April 2006, it was reported that Atlético Madrid had “pulled off a stunning transfer coup in the signing of Independiente striker Sergio Agüero.”That same day, Independiente denied the reports, but the player himself later told Argentine television, “Although I still don’t know what’s going to happen to me, this could have been my last goal and my last game for Independiente.” On 29 May 2006, it was announced that Atlético Madrid had signed the striker for an undisclosed fee, reported to be around €23 million, breaking the club’s previous transfer record.

In the 2007–08 season, Agüero finished third in scoring in La Liga, behind Dani Güiza and Luís Fabiano, with 19 goals, and was runner up in the Trofeo Alfredo di Stéfano award for best player in La Liga.

Agüero has become a regular goalscorer for Atlético in the 2008–09 season, forming a strong partnership with Uruguayan striker Diego Forlán, also a former Independiente striker. On 1 March 2009, the duo of Forlán and Agüero scored a brace each in a dramatic 4–3 win over league leaders Barcelona. Agüero finished in the top ten runners for the Pichichi Trophy while his teammate Forlán won the trophy. Atlético finished fourth in the league, securing a UEFA Champions League spot.

In the 2009–10 season, Agüero came off the bench and scored a brace against Chelsea during a 2–2 draw at the Vicente Calderón on Champions League match-day four. After being knocked out of the Champions League in the group stages, Aguero helped Atlético to the Final of the Europa League, knocking out Liverpool in the semi-finals along the way, on 29 April. On 12 May 2010, Agüero played in the final of the Europa League as Atlético Madrid won the trophy for the first time with a 2–1 win against Fulham.

International career

Agüero made his senior debut for Argentina in a friendly with Brazil, played at Emirates Stadium, England on 3 September 2006. As a teenager, he represented Argentina at three FIFA World Youth Championships. Together with future 2008 Olympics squad teammates Fernando Gago of Real Madrid and Lionel Messi of Barcelona, they won the 2005 edition in the Netherlands.

2007 U20 World Cup

At the 2007 U-20 World Cup in Canada, he scored twice and helped set up three goals in a 6–0 win over Panama in the second game of the group stage of the tournament. Agüero then scored the only goal in Argentina’s third match against North Korea from a free kick. Having qualified to the round of 16, he scored two of the three goals against Poland that would eventually give them a 3-1 win to advance to the next round. Argentina defeated Mexico in the quarter-finals and Chile in the semi-finals, and faced the Czech Republic in the finals, a team they drew 0-0 in the group stage. Agüero captained and scored the equaliser in the 62nd minute, leading to a 2–1 victory. In addition, Agüero won the Golden Boot of the tournament, scoring six goals in seven games, and the Golden Ball as the best player of the tournament, succeeding to countryman Lionel Messi who won both awards at the 2005 tournament.

2008 Summer Olympics

As a member of the Argentine squad for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Agüero scored two goals in the space of five minutes in the semi-final 3–0 win over Brazil on 19 August 2008. Argentina went on to win the gold medal, a second in a row at the Olympic tournament.
2010 World Cup

He was chosen for the 2010 World Cup squad, and was a substitute in Argentina’s first match against Nigeria. He was not used in the match, but it ended 1-0 for Argentina. Agüero made his World Cup debut in Argentina’s second group match against Korea Republic on 12 June 2010, replacing Carlos Tévez in the 75th minute. Agüero’s impact was immediate as Argentina scored in the next minute. He assisted on Gonzalo Higuaín’s hat-trick goal late in the game. Argentina won the game 4-1.

Sources
wikipedia.org
sergio-aguero.com