Atletico Madrid rule out move for Manchester City outcast

Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo has seemingly ruled out a summer move to re-sign out-of-favour Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero after labelling the striker ‘stupid’ for his decision to leave the club in 2011.

Aguero, 28, has been tipped with a City exit at the end of the season after dropping below 19-year-old Gabriel Jesus in the pecking order in recent matches, despite the fact Pep Guardiola insists he doesn’t want the striker to leave.

The Argentina international would not be short of suitors at the end of the season and it would have made sense for Atletico to move for their former striker if they fail to keep Antoine Griezmann from the clutches of Manchester United.

However, that move now appears deal in the water following the sour note Aguero left the club on back in 2011 when he forced a move through to City in a deal worth £38m when the Spanish giants were hoping to fetch £52m for his signature.

“Aguero has been the only player who left Atleti under a cloud, as he was stupid,” Cerezo told Spanish radio station COPE, via The Daily Mail. “He arrived as a hero, and he left through the back door.”

Despite Aguero’s status as one of the best strikers in the world, his future remains less clear-cut. It remains to be seen whether City would allow Aguero to move to a Premier League rival or whether the striker would even want to play for another team in England.

Financial restrictions would seemingly rule Barcelona out, while Real Madrid’s transfer policy has shifted from signing big names with a short shelf life to big names with their career's ahead of them.

What cannot be disputed, however, is his status as one of the Premier League’s best strikers of all-time. Since his arrival in 2011, Aguero has scored more goals than any other player in the Premier League (113).

For more stats on Sergio Aguero, click here to visit his WhoScored player page