Sergio Aguero Would 'Love' to Link Up With International Teammate Lionel Messi at Manchester City

Sergio Aguero has revealed he would 'love' his national compatriot Lionel Messi to join him at Manchester City, but admitted the deal would be complicated to complete due to the forward's fierce loyalty for Barcelona.  

As Messi's contract at Camp Nou expires next summer, the 30-year-old is free to hold discussions with clubs outside of Spain from January 1. However, the superstar forward's wages would come at a large cost to any side - although Aguero claims that would not be an issue for City. 

Alex Caparros/GettyImages

Despite Barcelona's president, Josep Maria Bartomeu insisting Messi's new deal is tied up and simply needs announcing, speculation continues to rise about the future of the Argentinian star as confirmation of an extension has yet to become official.

Although the delay may offer a slight glimmer of hope to some, Aguero is of mind that a move for Messi is unlikely - despite the fact that finances would not be a concern for those at the Etihad.  

"The money isn't a problem here," Aguero told TyC Sport, via Goal. "But I think Messi, like [Cristiano] Ronaldo, are players who are symbols of their clubs and it's difficult for them to leave.

"I would love to have Leo on my team, but that seems quite complicated."

Aguero had to watch from the sidelines, as Messi scored a hat-trick on Wednesday to secure Argentina's place at the World Cup next summer, after sustaining a broken rib in car crash in Amsterdam last month.

However, Aguero hit back at his critics for suggesting he should not have been in Amsterdam in his days off from the club.

He added: "When a player has a free day at Manchester City, most of the players go to London, others to Italy, some to Spain. I had almost two days off and going to the airport was when I had that accident.

The 29-year-old was widely expected to not feature for City throughout October due to the injury, but the striker hinted he could be in contention for his side's match against Stoke on Saturday.

"I still do not know if I am going to play on Saturday. Today I trained normally, but without the group.Tomorrow I will get into the group to see how I feel, but at training it's not the same thing as a game, I want to see if I have pain."