A player who needs little introduction – Aguiar has returned to the Sussex Transport Community Stadium after two years away from West Sussex. Having risen through the club’s ranks before establishing himself as one of the brightest young midfielders in Non-League, the now 25-year-old is back for his third spell with the Rebels following his release from York City at the end of the 2025/26 season.
Aguiar’s performances in a Red shirt as a teenager garnered attention from several EFL outfits, having won both the Manager’s Player of the Season and Players’ Player of the Season awards in 2018/19 and retaining the Manager’s Player once again in 2019/20. Swindon Town convinced the talent that Wiltshire was the best place for his career, winning the race for his signature in 2021.
Technique 😮💨
💫 An absolute stunner from Ricky Aguiar last night! pic.twitter.com/vFkcIGdSZF
— Worthing FC (@WorthingFC) November 15, 2023
Following loans at Chippenham Town and Torquay United from the Robins, Ricky was brought back on a temporary basis by manager Adam Hinshelwood at the start of the 2023/24 season.
He quickly reminded supporters of his qualities with 12 goals and five assists in the first half of the season, before the League Two side activated the clause to recall the midfielder to play a part in the remainder of their season.
After Hinshelwood moved to York City, one of his first transfer decisions was to recruit Aguiar to join his squad in the National League.
In the 2024/25 season, our newest Red made 30 National League appearances, scoring twice as York agonisingly missed out on promotion into the Football League.
Last season, Ricky featured in a West Sussex derby at Woodside Road for a rival while on loan at Horsham before ending the season with Eastleigh.
Adam Hinshelwood commented on Ricky’s return: “We are absolutely delighted to welcome Ricky back to Woodside Road.
“He is a player with immense quality in possession and can score goals from a wide range of positions, just like he did for us in his loan spell a few years ago.
“I can’t wait to be back working with Ricky on a daily basis, he adds a lot of depth to our midfield options.”
Ricky also reacted to agreeing terms with the Reds: “Returning feels special to me, and I’m coming back with more experience and hunger.
“It’s a club with big ambition and I’m proud to be a part of what’s being built and excited to be back playing in front fans back at Woodside.”
To date, Aguiar has made 130 appearances for the Rebels, scoring 28 goals, tallies he will be aiming to add to in the coming season.
Similar to fellow midfield maestro, Jack Wadham, Ricky has spent the opening stages of pre-season participating in training sessions with the First-Team squad and appearing in the friendlies against AFC Bournemouth U21s and Frome Town.
Against the former, the technician scored a sumptuous strike in the Behind-Closed-Doors encounter last weekend in Dorset before coming off the bench and producing another encouraging display away to Frome on Saturday afternoon.
Ricky is available for selection for tonight’s friendly against QPR U21s at the Sussex Transport Community Stadium.
Welcome back, Ricky!
Originally published by Worthing FC ↗