Pep Guardiola Lavishes Praise on Sergio Agüero Following 2-0 Community Shield Win Over Chelsea

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola singled out Sergio Agüero for special praise, following his brace in a 2-0 victory over Chelsea in the Community Shield on Sunday afternoon.

Speaking after the comfortable victory, via the Telegraph, the former Barcelona boss paid homage to the Argentine ace, stating: "We were really impressed when he arrived (at pre-season training). Sergio (Agüero) always has a little bit with his physicality, maybe he needs a little bit more time to take his physical condition. But he arrived so sharp, so good.

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"I think at the end of last season, the knee operation. He suffered the previous years with a little bit of a problem and Ramon Cugat, the best doctor in the world, made the perfect surgery and now he feels free. I think it's good news for us for the season. He scored two goals, produced chances, he could have scored three or four or five. That is good."

Turning his attention to the overall team performance, Guardiola said: "Once we are there we just try to be serious, to play strong in the head. We did it and that is why we are satisfied. We are still far away from the physical condition we want to play. In most cases still we are far, far away.

"The players are in bad, bad condition and, hopefully, this week we have seven days and the next week seven days more where we can increase our level.”

Despite Guardiola's concerns over fitness, City's win never looked in doubt, as the Premier League champions powered to victory over the lacklustre Blues. Agüero opened the scoring within a quarter of an hour, with a trademark finish from the edge of the area. The former Atlético Madrid man sealed the win midway through the second half, with another fine effort.

Meanwhile, City forwardRaheem Sterling is rumoured to have asked for a new deal in the region of £300k per week, in order to keep him at the Etihad Stadium. The England international is believed to be eager to commit his future to the club, but is determined to secure a suitably lucrative deal before putting pen to paper on a contact extension.