COMMENT: Late on Sunday evening, City were scrambling. The big guns at Manchester City were doing the ring around to their closest in the press: Get it out there! Get it out there! We want Sergio to stay.
And the scribes obliged. Indeed, City's response was so swift, you could almost publish the two versions alongside eachother. On the left was Sergio Aguero admitting he could leave City at season's end. And on the right was the club making it clear no-one was pushing the Argie out.
But why the panic?
In his comments - and it was a bombshell - Aguero never made any accusations. He wasn't aggressive. It was almost matter-of-fact.
“When you're on the bench you have to wait for your opportunity. I have three months to do my best and help the team and we'll see what happens," he said. “In these last three months that are left I have to help the club and as I say the club will decide if I have a place here or not."
With Pep Guardiola selecting the new kid on the block ahead of him, Aguero was simply taking a cold, hard look at his situation. Guardiola has declared Gabriel Jesus "the future of Manchester City", all the while preferring his new Brazilian whiz to arguably City's greatest ever player. Of course, El Kun is going to take stock of the situation.
A club source was quoted in the early hours of the morning: “No-one here wants him to leave, and Pep has been explicit about that."
But that won't wash for Aguero. It's clear where he stands with his manager. This is Aguero we're talking about. Not any old decent first teamer. The equivalent of an Andres Iniesta at Barcelona. Yet, while Guardiola has been happy to offer reasons and excuses for his benching of El Kun, he never, during his time at Barca, considered treating Iniesta, Xavi or Lionel Messi in the same manner.
The manager simply doesn't rate him. Aguero knows this. He's seen the way Guardiola pays closer attention to the likes of Kevin de Bruyne, Leroy Sane - and now Gabriel. Aguero knows the score. In Guardiola's eyes, he's a means to an end. The Spaniard will play him, sure. But the idea this new, emerging team is going to be built around Aguero. To bring out the very best in the Argentine. Well, in the era of Pep, it just isn't going to happen.
No matter the manager's opinion, Aguero is still Aguero. His treatment by Guardiola hasn't seen his stock fall across Europe. There's been plenty of major players who have thrived, despite being abandoned by Guardiola. Just ask Joe Hart. Or better yet, Zlatan. The Catalan, as shocking as it may seem, can actually get it wrong sometimes.
To be fair, this may not have anything to do with personalities. Aguero simply may not be a Guardiola type. He of the 'false 9'. The team of ten midfielders. Gabriel, who this column did suggest would transform City's playing identity, isn't a natural striker. But he fits the vision Guardiola holds for his attack. Outside Aguero, only Kelechi Iheanacho could be viewed as an archetypal striker within City's squad. Yet, Guardiola failed to register the lad for the Champions League. You can see where his team plans are heading...
So it's over for Aguero and City. The split will happen at the end of this season. For now, the good money is on a move abroad, specifically a return to Spain and Real Madrid. The 'non-aggression' pact between Real and Atletico Madrid now void and long forgotten. But such a switch is no certainty.
There's still a bitterness on Aguero's side over the way Florentino Perez, the Real president, handled the original on-off move from Atletico. Florentino had assured Aguero a deal would be done. But as he waited at home in Argentina, it was clear to the player and his family that Florentino would break his word. For Atletico fans, the manner of his departure still burns and Aguero remains bitter over the way he was made a punching bag for all of Real's dithering.
Aguero can hold a grudge. Chelsea's David Luiz, after their nasty clash earlier this season, knows all about that. And is reason why a move within the Premier League cannot be discounted. Aguero has been calm in his statements. But being dumped for an unproven kid? Benched and having his work-rate questioned? This will all be burning up him inside. The prospect of moving to an English rival and bringing them the success City are so desperate for would only offer the purest motivation to the striker.
Chelsea is a likely non-starter. But what could Aguero achieve alongside Harry Kane in Tottenham's attack? Playing for an appreciative manager (and countryman) like Mauricio Pochettino? Or what of launching a new era at Arsenal, leading the line for Massimiliano Allegri? Still only 28, Aguero being parachuted into either team immediately strengthens them. Indeed, on paper, he transforms both North London clubs into a bigger title contender than Pep's City.
Under Guardiola, Aguero is only marking time. The summer market can't come soon enough. And when it does, there'll be a queue of managers, some the best in the world, convinced his best years are ahead of him.
Gabriel may be the future of Manchester City. But Aguero is the here and now. And will have no shortage of offers to prove Guardiola wrong.