Sergio Aguero has promised not to hold back in Manchester City's Champions League clash with Juventus on Wednesday, despite having just recovered from his latest injury setback.
Aguero spent a month on the sidelines with a hamstring before returning in City's 4-1 loss against Liverpool on Saturday. The match before the injury, however, he'd set a Premier League record by netting the league's's quickest ever five-goal haul in City's 6-1 win over Newcastle on Oct. 3.
Speaking on Monday, Aguero promised to give his all on the pitch.
"You cannot truly measure the intensity with which you play," Aguero said ahead of Wednesday's match.
"And on top of that, I always try to kick into top gear. I can't imagine playing in any other way.
"Sometimes these unfortunate things happen but the ultimate reward only comes if you give it your all."
The former Atletico Madrid striker had missed City's last seven matches after suffering his setback while playing for Argentina against Ecuador last month. He said he felt well before that game in Buenos Aires, but injuries are unpredictable.
"I did feel well," Aguero said. "I had taken a special training programme to specifically avoid overexertion and I felt in good condition.
"But you never know when an injury is going to come. I went to play as I usually do -- giving it my all. Then at one moment, when I went to kick the ball, I felt the strain.
"It was a shame because I hadn't had a muscular injury in over a year but what happened happened and I can't turn back the clock.
"The important thing now is to take the time needed for it to be a full recovery -- and that's what I'm doing."
Manchester City currently sit atop their Champions League group, one point ahead of 2014-15 finalists Juventus. Their domestic form has been equally impressive as they trail leaders Leicester by a similar point in the Premier League.
Despite their financial might, the Etihad club have so far disappointed in Europe's top club competition. According to Aguero, their struggles haven't been due to a lack of respect for the competition.
"The Champions League is the most important competition in the world, isn't it," said Aguero.
"The good thing is that the Champions League is every year, so every year you can do your best to win it, and every football player wants to do that.
"We have a great team at City. We are on the right path, and it's only the beginning -- there are five games left to try to go through, and then to move through the knockout stages, which is what we are all looking for."
City have failed to advance past the Champions League's Round of 16 during Aguero's time at the club. He believes those experiences have placed he and his teammates on the right path.
"Since I arrived here, the draw in the Champions League has been very tough on City, and we have always drawn great teams in the group stages, teams which got to the semis or the final," Aguero said.
"In the last few Champions Leagues we have, maybe, not had the experience. Maybe some players did not know what it was to play in the Champions League.
"The first times were difficult, the nerves, the expectations.
"But now most of us have enough experience. We have very good players who are going to do a lot for us, and I think we are on the right path. There is still a lot of time to achieve things."
He added that the tournament's profile has grown greatly in his native Argentina.
"We always used to watch the Champions League because it is the best competition in the world. And obviously whenever there was a match we would always check the results.
"But every year it got bigger, because at the start it wasn't watched somuch in Argentina, and in the last few years it has become much more popular."