Barcelona confirm signing of Sergio Aguero

Striker leaves Man City as the club’s record goalscorer and joins Barca on a two-year deal

Sergio Aguero is unveiled as a Barcelona player (AFP via Getty Images)

Sergio Aguero will officially join Barcelona at the end of June following the expiration of his contract with Manchester City.

It was announced in April that Aguero would leave City at the end of the season, and his appearance off the bench in Saturday’s Champions League final loss to Chelsea marked his last game for the club.

The striker leaves City as their record goalscorer, having won five Premier League titles, one FA Cup and six Carabao Cups since joining in 2011 – with the most recent Premier League and Carabao Cup triumphs coming this season.

Aguero had been linked with a move to Barcelona since it was revealed that he would be moving on from City, and his signing with the La Liga side has now been confirmed.

The 32-year-old, who turns 33 this week, will join the Catalan club on a two-year deal with a release clause of €100million.

Barcelona finished third in La Liga this term, seven points off champions Atletico Madrid, who beat rivals Real to the title by one point on the final day of the season.

Aguero joined City from Atletico in summer 2011, and his extra-time goal against QPR on the last day of the following season sealed the club’s first top-flight title in 44 years.

The striker’s 257 goals for City are more than any other player has ever managed for the Manchester club. A brace in City’s 5-0 thrashing of Everton this month also saw Aguero break the record for most Premier League goals by a player for a single club.

Man City coach Pep Guardiola paid a tearful tribute to the Argentina international as City lifted the top-flight trophy after that victory over Everton, though reports suggest that the Spaniard’s relationship with Aguero had become strained in recent months.

Ronald Koeman, a team-mate of Guardiola’s at Barcelona in the 1990s, is set to be Aguero’s new manager.

The former Netherlands international left his role as the Dutch national team’s coach to take over at Barca at the start of the season.