Record goalscorer Sergio Aguero will leave Manchester City at the end of the season, the club has announced.
The 32-year-old striker’s contract expires at the end of the season and he has been told it will not be renewed.
The Argentine, who signed from Atletico Madrid in 2011, has scored 257 goals in 384 appearances for the club.
“With the guidance of the owners and the contributions of many players, we earned a place among the greatest of the world,” Aguero said.
He will be honoured by a statue at Etihad Stadium, alongside Vincent Kompany and David Silva.
Aguero has played a leading role in City’s renaissance in recent years, famously scoring the injury-time winner against QPR in 2012 which clinched the club’s first English title in 44 years.
Since then, he has helped City win three more Premier League titles, one FA Cup and five League Cups.
“Sergio’s contribution to Manchester City over the last 10 years cannot be overstated,” City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak said.
“His legend will be indelibly etched into the memories of everyone who loves the club and maybe even in those who simply love football.”
Aguero has played a peripheral role this season, because of injury and illness, as City chase a quadruple of Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup and League Cup.
However, former City defender Micah Richards – who won the title alongside Aguero in the 2011-12 season – thinks the Argentine still has a lot to offer.
“Unless you get [Kylian] Mbappe, [Erling Braut] Haaland or [Harry] Kane, what striker are you going to get to replace him? You get another year out of him,” Richards told BBC Radio 5 Live’s Monday Night Club.
“We don’t know the full details – he might want to leave. But if he is being forced out, that’s another story.” BBC Sport
