August 09, (THEWILL) –Â La Liga side Barcelona are yet to catch their breath after the shock exit of their record-setting legend Lionel Messi due to league restrictions and his Argentine compatriot brought into Camp Nou to be his strike partner, Sergio Aguero, is already sidelined for a lengthy injury spell.
Confirmation that Aguero will have to wait until November to make his Barcelona debut, after securing a free transfer from English Premier League champions Manchester City, came on Monday after scans confirmed he could miss up to ten weeks of action with the calf injury.
Aguero sustained his latest injury in the build-up to Barcelona’s pre-season friendly against Juventus, which Barca won 3-0.
Initial assessment believed it was nothing severe and he was expected to miss just three or four weeks of the new season before regaining fitness.
Unfortunately, the scans revealed otherwise and Aguero could be looking at another lengthy pitch-side season.
From the scans, a tendon problem was identified and it carries the likelihood of properly healing within a ten-week period, all things being equal.
The implication for Aguero is that he can realistically return to training in the middle of October based on that schedule and finally, sometime in November, be in the lineup for a proper debut in the La Blaugrana colours of Barca.
That will see Aguero miss no less than 12 La Liga fixtures including an away trip to defending champions Atletico Madrid on October 3 and a visit from Real Madrid a few weeks later on October 24.
It will be another tough period for the striker and not as he will have loved to begin his new contract considering how tedious it was to register with Barca and the recent departure of his friend and countryman Messi.
It led to some rumours beginning to circulate about the former Manchester City forward being disconsolate about the circumstances and seeking a way out of his new contract at Camp Nou. It got out of hand quickly as Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur were mentioned as interested.
It did not pan out to be accurate and Barca manager Ronald Koeman stressed just how important Aguero will be to the team over the coming season while shooting down rumours of the player’s desire to leave.
Although, Keenan also regretted the injury Aguero suffered when he said: “It is a lie that Aguero wants to leave. He has signed with Barça and is very excited. It’s too bad he got injured this morning, and he couldn’t play those 30 minutes. It is a step backwards, he was training well, but he can contribute a lot to the team going forward.”
Their 3-0 Joan Gramper trophy victory on Sunday over a Juventus side boasting of the combined firepower of Cristiano Ronaldo and Alvaro Morata will be a sure confidence booster for the Spanish side after the emotional few days even if it will come as little consolation for returning Juve manager, Massimiliano Allegri.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
