Former Manchester City Sergio Aguero announced his retirement at the age of 33 this week, bringing one of modern football’s most legendary careers to an abrupt and painfully early end.
Heart checks after complaints of chest pains and breathing issues in Barcelona’s draw with Alaves in October forced the Argentine to make a tough decision just months after bringing a glittering decade at City to a close.
But it could have been so different, as Manchester United were tipped off about his quality as early as 2004.
Charlie Woods had just left Newcastle United, where he’d spent five years as chief scout under close friend Sir Bobby Robson, having worked for Tottenham Hotspur beforehand. He was sat in the stands as a 16-year-old Aguero arrived as a second half substitute, much like he did on his debut against San Lorenzo aged 15 years and 35 days a year earlier, during which he faced future City teammate Pablo Zabaleta.
Despite being unattached to a club after departing Newcastle in a less than favourable way after Robson’s sacking, he still opened up his contact book to try and alert United boss Sir Alex Ferguson to Aguero.
“I rang Alex because I’d left Newcastle and I wasn’t going to tell them because of the way they treated Bobby,” Woods, now 80, tells MEN. “I said I’d just seen an incredible young player in Argentina and he should take a look. He said to me: ‘Has he got a passport?’ and I wasn’t sure, but they had a feeder club in Belgium (Royal Antwerp) and maybe he could have gone there.
“Obviously he wasn’t going to take him on my say-so, but he said: ‘Thanks, Charlie, I’ll talk to my staff.’ I didn’t hear anything so I left it.”
Aguero’s time at the Camp Nou had proven a disaster, from his best friend Lionel Messi being forced to leave just after his arrival in the summer to a long-term calf injury and, finally, a heartbreaking goodbye.
He had departed the Etihad Stadium as City’s all time top goalscorer with 260 goals, the fourth highest scorer in Premier League history with 187 goals, five Premier League titles, six League Cups and one FA Cup.
There were great moments, too; none better, of course, than his last minute title-winning strike against Queens Park Rangers in 2012, ending his first season after a £35m move from Atletico Madrid in style.
Woods had witnessed a young Aguero just by chance, having gone out to Argentina as a favour to a friend.
“I knew an agent, Horacio Lauder," he added.
"He said he’d pay for my flights if I went out there and looked at some players to recommend for him.
“The great thing about Argentine football is that you could see four or five games in one trip. I saw Carlos Tevez for Boca Juniors and Javier Mascherano at River Plate. The atmosphere was always incredible, at Boca, River and even Independiente, even though they weren’t as big a club.
“I didn’t know who Aguero was, or anything about him. I went to the match just to cover it, with a clean slate. He came on as sub as this small looking lad, but he was stocky. He had some strength about him and he soon showed how good he was. It was an outstanding performance.”
Woods cannot recollect the opponent or result, but he is clear that Aguero didn’t score. Even so, he left a huge impression on him and the party he had travelled with.
“I was with Jeff Vetere and Keith Peacock, who were at Charlton Athletic at the time. Late on in the game, I looked over at the pair of them and they were just amazed.
“Aguero was so mature for his age, doing the sort of thing he did throughout his career even then; he played up front but kept coming short and linking the play. I thought: “Who is this kid?” He just looked the same player as he did throughout his career; he did some wonderful things.”
For Woods, scouting was never simply about analysing every detail. It was much more nuanced, beginning with getting joy out of watching a player. Nearly 20 years on, he looks back on that match with great fondness.
“I remember once asking (former England manager) Ron Greenwood: ‘What do you see in a player?’ and he told me: ‘Charlie, its about something that pleases my eye.’ It was one of those moments; there was just something about Aguero straight away. He was small but he held himself really well; he accepted the ball into feet and turned people, dictated the play, dropped the shoulder around the box and got shots away. He was dangerous; he looked a class act.”
“At the end of the game, Jeff and Keith both said he could have their passports,” Woods laughs. “I’d asked Horacio to go and find out some information about him; who his agent was and things like that. He spoke to his father, who he said was looking after him.”
Two years later, Aguero signed for Atletico Madrid for £16.5m, a club record at the time, as an 18-year-old. He had become better known in Europe by then after winning the under-20 World Cup alongside the likes of Messi and Angel Di Maria. He spent five years in Spain, winning the Europa League in his penultimate season before joining City in 2011.
He hit the ground running, scoring twice as a substitute on his debut against Swansea and seven times in his first five Premier League games. There never seemed a point when he looked to be struggling, beyond some injury problems. Woods says he watched his career closely after he emerged at Atletico, fully expecting to see him succeed.
“When I heard he’d joined Atletico, I thought: ‘Well, there you go.’ They obviously saw what I did, but it is a pity that nobody in England did at the time. He’s been a great player; it is nice to see somebody come through that you can say you spotted early.”
