Man City confirms Sergio Agüero will leave club at end of season

Argentina striker Sergio Agüero said on Monday he was "proud" of his time at Manchester City after announcing his departure when his contract runs out this July.

Agüero joined City from Atletico Madrid in 2011 and has 257 goals in 384 games since, making him their record goal-scorer.

He scored the dramatic winning goal as they edged local rivals Manchester United to the 2012 Premier League.

"When a cycle comes to an end, many sensations arise," he posted on social media. "A huge sense of satisfaction and pride remains in me for having played with Manchester City for a whole 10 seasons – unusual for a professional player this day and age.

"I will continue to give it my utmost for the rest of the season to win more titles and bring more joy to the fans," he added.

In a club statement, City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak said he would reserve any farewell speeches until Agüero leaves, but revealed he had commissioned a statue of the striker.

"Sergio's contribution to Manchester City over the last 10 years cannot be overstated," Al Mubarak said.

"This is not yet the moment for farewell words and speeches. There is still much to achieve," he said with City in the running for their first ever Champions League and hot favourites to win the Premier League.

"In the meantime, it gives me great pleasure to announce that we will be commissioning an artist to create a statue of Sergio to live at the Etihad Stadium," he added.

Newspaper Manchester Evening News said City were planning a farewell party for Agüero after their final game of the Premier League season against Everton May 23.

The 32-year-old contracted Covid-19 in January after a season already ravaged by injury and he has played 14 games for City this term, scoring three times.

Agüero missed the end of last season and the start of the current campaign after undergoing knee surgery last June.

Since then he has had another lay-off after suffering a hamstring injury in October.