Argentine striker Sergio Agüero has dismissed talk of being forced to retire from professional football early because of health issues.
On 30 October, Agüero was making his full home debut for Barcelona in a league fixture with Alavès when he suffered breathing difficulties. He went down on the pitch in the 40th minute, clutching his hand to his chest, with a look of anguish on his face, to the growing alarm of the fans in the stands.
He was able to leave the pitch unaided and taken to a local hospital where he underwent a series of tests. He was subsequently diagnosed with tachycardia – an elevated heart rate which is currently unrelated to physical exertion.
However, he has been ruled out of action for an initial three months, while the effectiveness of treatment is evaluated to determine his recovery process.
Catalan media has now reported that his heart problems may force the 33-year-old to hang up his boots early, although his national team coach Lionel Scaloni is still hoping to see him return to competitive action.
Agüero, though, insists that he remains positive and that he has been following the instructions of the club’s doctors and doing all the medical tests required.
So far, the move to Barcelona has not worked out as planned for Agüero, who joined the Spanish club as a free agent after his contract with Manchester City, where he had been the club’s leading all-time goal scorer came to an end.
One of the reasons he joined the Catalans was the chance to play with his close friend Lionel Messi. It was a blow to him when his fellow Argentine left the club when they decided they could not afford to pay for his new contract.
And their serious financial issues meant that they were unable to officially register him initially.
Injury subsequently caused him to miss the opening weeks of the season, although he did finally come on as a late substitute in El Clásico and scored his first goal for the club deep in injury-time, although it was in a losing cause.