Aguero to stay put say Athletico Madrid

Pa
Friday 26 September 2008 15:42 BST
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Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo has told Chelsea and Manchester City not to waste their time pursuing star striker Sergio Aguero as the player wants to stay put.

Aguero has developed into one of the game's most highly rated strikers over the last couple of years at Atletico, inevitably leading to speculation about big-money bids for the 20-year-old, whose buy-out clause is £47.6m.

Real Madrid, Inter Milan and Chelsea are among the sides who have been linked to Aguero in the past, while Manchester City have reportedly joined the list since their takeover by Abu Dhabi-based business tycoons the United Group for Development and Investment.

Both City and Chelsea are believed to have had scouts at Atletico's Primera Liga match against Getafe on Wednesday to check out the striker.

But Cerezo insists even if a club meets the player's buy-out clause, 'El Kun' would have no interest in leaving the Spanish capital.

"I don't know what the people from Chelsea or Manchester City were doing in Getafe. I don't know," he told Spanish newspaper Marca.

"The truth is they told me they were looking for Cristiano Ronaldo, but I don't know if they found him.

"What should I know? City haven't even asked about 'El Kun' so how do I know what they want?

"What I do know and what I can guarantee is that Kun Aguero wants to be in Madrid, he wants to play for Atletico Madrid and he wants to live here in Madrid."

Cerezo admitted that despite his comments, which echoed those of coach Javier Aguirre yesterday, the rumours surrounding his star player are likely to continue.

However, he is certain about Aguero's desire to stay.

"We're used to stories of this nature and I suppose they won't stop here today, they'll keep coming out," he said.

"But here we have the sun, good weather, a great team, phenomenal supporters and a marvellous coach."

Aguero joined Atletico from Independiente in the summer of 2006 for a fee reportedly in the region of £18million - and has four years left on his contract.

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