Sergio: 2024 Predictions

It’s a new year but the football action hasn’t slowed down, so we caught up with Stake’s Global Ambassador Sergio Agüero to break down all the hot topics!

Manchester City

Lionel Messi beat Erling Haaland to the Best award for 2023 - was this the correct decision?

If Leo's still playing, he'll be the best there is.

Is Bernardo Silva’s backheel goal the best of its kind you have seen?

What a goal. Not a surprise coming from Bernardo and his usual quality as a football player.

That kind of touch requires a special type of craft that not everyone can achieve.

The ball was lagging behind a little, so you'd need extraordinary quickness of feet to pull it off.

Bernardo's got that, plus a sharp intuition, and it allowed him to net that goal.

City play Tottenham away in the FA Cup having never even scored a goal at their new Stadium, did you find it difficult to play against Spurs at that stadium?

Records are meant to be broken, aren't they?

I wouldn't look into the past and assume it isn't possible that that'll soon change.

What was your favourite Premier League ground to play at (besides the Etihad of course)?

I didn´t have a favourite, but it was always nice to play in the major venues like Anfield, Emirates, or Old Trafford.

I didn't do so bad myself on that one, right?

City have been linked with Pedro Neto; what do you think of him as a player?

Haven't heard anything about that personally.

City's one to plan out addition thoroughly, so we'll have to wait and see.

City have completed the signing of Claudio Echeverri from River Plate, what can you tell us about him?

Lots of quality and potential. Saw him play the U-17 World Cup and enjoyed his style.

He can use the year he has ahead at River Plate to get used to being part of the Senior squad, then he'll have to fight the uphill battle that is adapting to European football.

But he's got the means to become a top-flight player.

Kalvin Phillips seems set to leave this month, are you surprised by this?

Seems like it's been discussed for some time now.

We'll know soon enough.

Is the title race effectively over now that Kevin De Bruyne is back for City and Haaland is closing in on a return?

Kevin's return is massive.

While City was able to make do without him for a few months, his presence is still a key factor to the team's performance.

Both for his impact on the game itself, as well as the effect he has on the opposition.

We saw that clear as day when he came in against Newcastle and allowed us to take back the lead.

Calling the race over would be an overstatement. A single player cannot win a league.

But we come out bolstered by Kevin's recovery, no doubt about that.

Are you fearful of the 115 charges looming over City currently for their alleged breach of financial rules?

I'd say this is a topic beyond my scope.

I can say that what our achievements as a team, on the field, were won with effort and sportsmanship, fair and square.

La Liga

A damaging defeat for Barca in the Super Cup - what did you make of it?

No team wants to lose a derby, less so a final.

That's how football is though, win some, lose some. Barca will eventually have a chance to straighten the score.

The pressure is on Xavi as manager - have you got some words of support for him at this time?

I'd say it wouldn't do justice to a manager's performance to base judgement on a single result.

His side won the League last year, and they are playing three other major competitions.

As I've said before: Xavi has FCB in his DNA.

He knows the club well, he knows he has a lot ahead, and he has the right team to achieve the ambitions he set for himself at the beginning of the season.

Robert Lewandowski seems to be off the pace, why do you think that is?

Can't be so off-pace if he scored against Madrid, can he?

Strikers are measured by the amount they score, and the moment their production takes a dip, they're "off-pace."

What I think is that a world-class striker should never be underestimated.

Bruno Guimaraes has been linked with a move in the summer, what do you think of him as a player?

Not a total surprised, given his great performance this season. Guimaraes has been doing very well for himself at Newcastle.

There's a high demand today for center-midfield players with good handling, striking and offensive potential.

Antoine Griezmann is now Atleti’s record goalscorer - do you think he is one of the greatest players of his era?

Of course, Griezmann should feel well at home in the club that has seen him perform the best of his career.

He's a player that scores and allows other to score too.

I'm happy for Atleti, this means he's helping them stay in the race for big things.

Would you have loved to play up front alongside him? How many goals do you think you would have scored with him creating chances for you?

Hard to know. But it's always a pleasure to play among the greats.

I'm sure we'd have a good rapport on the field.

Argentina

The Primera Division starts later this month, what are your predictions for the season?

Argentina's tournament is a whole other animal from its European counterparts, and that makes it even hard to predict.

There are 28 teams in two zones, that creates a whole different dynamic. Boca and River are the permanent candidates, but surprises abound.

I hope Carlos Tevez can give Independiente a chance for the top position, myself.

Who could be the next superstar from Argentina to make a big move to Europe?

There are quite a few candidates. Barco was transferred to Brighton, and Prestianni to Benfica.

Many of the U-17/U-20 players could have a move to Europe in their near future.

What I've noticed is that their move to Europe is coming even earlier in their career, so I wouldn't be surprised that the big clubs have some targets in mind already.

Inter Miami

How excited are you to see Inter Miami face Al Nassr and Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to face each other once again?

It'll be certainly interesting.

For many years, the Barca-Madrid derby carried their hallmark confrontations.

This time, it'll happen in a wholly different context, it'll be a new kind of way to see this classic face-off.

What are you expecting to see from Luis Suarez following his move to Miami?

I'm very happy to see Luis and Leo play together again.

They make a great partnership, and I don't see a reason not to ask for an encore.

It's tough news for the rivals though, even more so with the presence of Busquets and Jordi Alba.

Should the rest of MLS be worried about Miami with their star-studded team?

Should they? I think they positively are. Other teams of the MLS have reinforced themselves in smart ways though.

That's good for everyone.

The North American league has become more and more competitive, and many players, seeing Leo there, are eager to join too.