How many fun facts do you know on Sergio Agüero and his teammates at Manchester City? For us here at QNET, these people are our beacon in the world of sports. We’re shining the spotlight over to our athletes and giving you some fun facts – some you’ll have already known, others you’ll get to know for the first time.
For our first edition of Know Your Players, we have Sergio Agüero, Kevin De Bruyne, and Karen
Manchester City’s star striker. Sergio Agüero reached global recognition when he made the iconic winning goal in the match against Queens Park Rangers in 2014 – a goal that gave City their first Premier League title in 44 years! One of the biggest names in football today, the Argentine is certainly a force to be reckoned with.
Fun Facts:
- His grandparents gave him the nickname Kun. As a boy, they thought he resembled the mischievous ‘Kum Kum’, his favourite Japanese cartoon character
- A child football prodigy, Agüero was signed to the Argentinian sports club CA Independiente at 9 years old
- He’s helped Argentina win the FIFA Under-20 World Cup twice
- He scored 30 goals during his debut season with Manchester City (the first player to do so in the top flight since Francis Lee in 1971-72)
- “No more pasta, no more sugar, and no more meat.” During football season, Agüero prioritises a vegetarian diet (as it allows him to have faster recovery times!)
Kevin De Bruyne
An all-round footballer who’d gotten media attention since his early teens, Manchester City approached Kevin De Bruyne twice before he finally accepted and joined in August 2015. Kevin has been named ‘man of the match’ in numerous League appearances and is an integral midfielder to the team. Even after sustaining several injuries in his career that meant taking a break from the field, he remains tenacious and keeps making memorable comebacks.
Fun Facts:
- Born to a Belgian father and an English mother, Kevin travelled with his parents often during his childhood due to their oil business
- He speaks French, Dutch, English and German
- He’s been living alone since he was 14 years old, when he joined KRC Genk’s Youth Academy to hone his football skills
- He’s an avid birdwatcher! In 2014, De Bruyne was declared an ambassador of Weltvogelpark (the biggest bird sanctuary in the world) in Walsrode, Germany
- By December 2019, he’d played 186 times for City, with 65 assists and 42 goals to his credit
Karen Bardsley
Determined, focussed, and a role model to all women. During matches, Karen Bardsley’s joyful demeanour is swiftly replaced with her quick reflexes and fearless leaps from the goal. A veteran goalkeeper with a professional career spanning over a decade, she started playing for Manchester City officially in 2014.
Fun Facts:
- She was born and raised in Southern California, but her parents originally hailed from Manchester, UK!
- She is known as England’s Transatlantic Lioness
- In university, she majored in graphic design
- She worked for a year in Disneyland (as Goofy and Tigger!)
- Representing England, Karen and her team won the 2019 SheBelieves Cup, an annual women’s football tournament held in the US
Stay tuned for more #QNETCITY fun facts on our footballers in next week’s edition of Know Your Players!
