It would be fair to say that Manchester City certainly missed the presence of Sergio Aguero in the club’s 1-1 draw with Stoke at the weekend, although it might not be too long before supporters see the Argentina striker take to the field again. Roberto Mancini has stated that the 24-year-old has been training with the first team squad for a week and is now in contention for the Champions League game against Real Madrid this week.

Aguero’s campaign started in the most disastrous fashion after he was forced off in City’s first game of the campaign against Southampton with a knee injury. Fortunately, he has not missed too many outings domestically due to the international break, although Mancini could not contain his disgust after Argentina decided to call up the player even though it was obvious he was not fit to play in their fixtures last week.

Nevertheless, after failing to return for the weekend game against Stoke, it looks like Aguero will definitely be involved in some capacity against Real on Tuesday. Speaking to the media, Mancini said, “Sergio has had a week working with the team so I think so. Real Madrid are one of the best teams in the world. To play the first game away will be very tough but at the same time I think it will be a fantastic game for everyone.”

With Aguero poised to return to the reckoning, it remains to be seen which attacking option Mancini will decide to sacrifice. He opted to start with Carlos Tevez and Mario Balotelli for the game with Stoke, with Edin Dzeko coming on as a late substitute. Following the troubles in front of goal in that clash, nobody quite knows what action the Italian will take ahead of the big Champions League encounter on Wednesday evening.