Barcelona striker Sergio Aguero has revealed why he decided against taking the No. 10 shirt at the club after Lionel Messi’s departure in the summer.
Speaking to Twitch streamer Ibai Llanos, as relayed by the Metro, Barcelona superstar Sergio Aguero has opened up on his decision not to take the No. 10 shirt at the club after it was vacated by Lionel Messi.
It has been a summer of changes at Barcelona, with the biggest one coming in the form of Messi leaving the club. After an illustrious career with the Catalans, the 34-year-old moved on to Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer due to the Blaugrana’s inability to extend his contract.
With his exit, the No. 10 shirt, that he had long held and led Barcelona to glory in, became vacant. And, Aguero, who signed for the Catalan giants only this past summer on a free transfer, was offered the chance to take the No. 10 shirt after the departure of his closest friend.
However, the former Manchester City superstar turned down the shirt, which was then given to Barcelona’s teenage sensation Ansu Fati. Opening up on why he refused to take the No. 10 jersey, which was previously donned by greats like Rivaldo and Ronaldinho as well, Aguero has revealed that it was ‘out of respect’ for his international teammate Messi.
?️ [@IbaiLlanos' Twitch] | Sergio Aguero: "Refusing to wear the number 10 shirt at Barcelona? It wasn't that I didn't want to, but it was out of respect for Messi." pic.twitter.com/10mJDmxBJg
— BarçaTimes (@BarcaTimes) September 5, 2021
“Refusing to wear the number 10 shirt at Barcelona? It wasn’t that I didn’t want to, but it was out of respect for Messi,” the Argentine centre-forward said.
The move to Barcelona has turned out to be a difficult one so far for Aguero. The 33-year-old made the switch from Manchester City in hope of playing with Messi, but saw the 2021 Copa America winner leave last month. Add to that, Aguero has had to deal with injury issues since arriving in Catalonia and is yet to make his debut for the La Liga bigwigs.
The all-time leading goalscorer for Manchester City is expected to be sidelined until next month at least, post which he will hope to make a mark and act as the focal point of this new Barcelona attack without Messi and Antoine Griezmann, who returned to Atletico Madrid on the deadline day. Having turned down the iconic No. 10 shirt, Aguero will instead be wearing No. 19.
