After a 15-year career with the Argentine national team, with more than 100 games and 41 goals under his belt, Sergio Agüero was forced to say goodbye prematurely to the 'Albiceleste', but he did so in great style, by lifting the coveted CONMEBOL Copa América.
Agüero had to face difficult times and a sequence of bad results for the national team, but he was always present and was one of the most constant players in the Argentine squad. He overcame criticism and proved to be important in the process of forming 'La Scaloneta', which would later win everything.
His debut in the CONMEBOL Copa América was in 2011, with the Argentines playing at home. 'Kun' found the net three times in that tournament. He scored three more goals in the 2015 edition played in Chile, two in 2016 in the United States, and another two in Brazil, in 2019.
In two of these editions (2015 and 2016), Argentina fell at the last hurdle by losing the final match. They also fell short in the 2014 FIFA World Cup final in Brazil, a 1-0 defeat to Germany, which triggered a crisis in the Argentine national team.
In 2019, Argentina took third place, but good performances under the helm of coach Lionel Scaloni led fans to believe that better times were about to come.
In the 2021 CONMEBOL Copa América, Kun was left as an option on the bench by Scaloni and entered the pitch during the first match against Chile. He then started the next two matches of the group stage, against Paraguay and Bolivia.
The quarter-final match against Ecuador was the last time Agüero played for the 'Albiceleste', when he came off the bench to play the final minutes of the game.
Argentina defeated Ecuador 3-0 in the quarter-finals and Colombia 3-2 on penalties in the semifinals. In the final, they beat Brazil 1-0 to win the CONMEBOL Copa América after 28 years, against none other than their biggest rival, in their homeland, at the mythical Maracanã stadium.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tLxv5EsszA
Agüero took part in the celebration and in the Argentine redemption, after breaking something that felt like a long-time curse.
After his forced retirement due to health problems, Sergio 'Kun' Agüero stated that the 2021 CONMEBOL Copa América and the Argentine national team gave him his "last joy". With a smile on his face, Agüero looks back at all the suffering he endured alongside his teammates, striving for title with the 'Albiceleste'.
