Independiente want Sergio Aguero back at his hometown club when he leaves Manchester City

'We're calling him to see if he's interested. It would be a pleasure to manage him again'

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Manchester City star Sergio Aguero is wanted by Independiente, the Argentine club's coach Julio Falcioni has revealed.

Runaway Premier League leaders City announced on Monday that Aguero, 32, would leave the club at the end of this season.

And record seven-time Copa Libertadores winners Independiente are trying to tempt the Argentine back to his hometown club.

"We're calling him to see if he's interested. It would be a pleasure to manage him again," said Falcioni, who is in his second stint as the Red Devils' coach having managed Aguero for one year during his first spell at the team based in Avellaneda, on the outskirts of Buenos Aires.

Aguero is thought to be on the hit list of some of Europe's biggest clubs such as Barcelona, Juventus, Inter Milan and Paris Saint-Germain.

"Here, he won't be able to sign something similar to what he earns there, but he would be back amongst friends, defending the colours he loves," Falcioni added.

Aguero is a legend at Manchester City having scored the dramatic 94th-minute goal against Queens Park Rangers in May 2012 to give the club their first top flight title in 44 years - even more satisfyingly at the expense of their great city rivals Manchester United.

In a decade in Manchester he has helped the club win the Premier League title four times, with a fifth crown almost certain to be secured within the next two months.

El jugador de Independiente Sergio Agüero (I), figura de su equipo y autor de dos goles a Racing, domina el balón ante la marca de Diego Menghi durante el tradicional clásico de Avellaneda en Buenos Aires el 25 de febrero de 2006, por la 6ta fecha del Torneo Clausura de Argentina. El ex jugador de la selección argentina y del Atlético de Madrid, Diego "El Cholo" Simeone, inició hoy su etapa como entrenador en el equipo de Racing.   AFP PHOTO/Sebastiao De Souza (Photo by SEBASTIAO DE SOUZA / AFP)
Sergio Aguero playing for Independiente in 2006. AFP

He has been City's all-time record goalscorer since 2017 and currently has 80 goals more than the next highest goalscorer, Eric Brook.

"The aim to call him will be to propose a return home, to the country, where he can be comfortable and help Independiente be better," said Falcioni.

Aguero made his debut in the red shirt of Independiente aged just 15 in 2003 and surpassed the late Diego Maradona as the youngest player to play in the Argentine top division - a record that had been set in 1976.

A few years later, Aguero married Maradona's daughter Gianinna, although the relationship, which produced a son, lasted only four years.

He moved to Atletico Madrid in 2006 and helped the side win the Europa League in 2010 having also claimed an Olympic Games gold medal with Argentina in Beijing in 2008.

He switched to City in a mega-money move reportedly worth around £35 million in 2011.

"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," Aguero wrote on social media on Monday.

He's the third highest scorer in the history of the Argentine national team with 41 goals in 97 appearances, bettered only by his close friend, the incomparable Lionel Messi (70) and Gabriel Batistuta (54).

Sergio Agüero (D) de Independiente festeja su gol ante River Plate durante el partido disputado el 12 de marzo de 2006 en Avellaneda, Buenos Aires, por la novena fecha del Torneo Clausura 2006 del futbol argentino.     AFP PHOTO/Sebastiao De Souza (Photo by SEBASTIAO DE SOUZA / AFP)
Sergio Aguero playing for Independiente against River Plate in 2006. AFP

"We need to bring him back to this stadium, which is difficult. He's a different type of player, the type we all want to manage and have in our team," said Falcioni.

Aguero has struggled this season with injury and illness and has played only 14 games for City, scoring three goals.