Sergio Aguero has been charged for violent conduct by the Football Association, ruling him out of the Manchester derby at Old Trafford should City choose not to appeal and win. The Argentina striker has received the ban for an alleged elbow on Winston Reid in Sunday’s 3-1 win over West Ham United at the Etihad. He has until 6 PM Wednesday to respond to the charge.
The incident happened during the second half against The Hammers, when Reid challenged Aguero for a header. Andre Mariner didn’t give a free-kick at the time, and reportedly said he didn’t see it in his match report; if he had, generally the FA don’t take any further action and it’s unlikely Aguero would have been charged.
Should the 28-year-old accept his charge, he’s likely to miss three games, including games against Bournemouth and Swansea City following the derby at Old Trafford. He will still be able to play in the Champions League group opener against Borussia Mönchengladbach, due to the ban only applying to domestic fixtures.
Aguero may still be out of the derby even if he appeals the charge and wins, due to a calf injury he picked up following the win over The Hammers. The injury led him to drop out of the Argentina international squad for games against Uruguay and Venezuela, with Pablo Zabaleta calling it “physical discomfort”.
