Manchester City are very much planning for the future.
In January, the Sky Blues spent big to add plenty of young talent to their squad, namely Nico González, Vitor Reis, Abdukodir Khusanov and others.
Abdukodir-Khusanov
Now, those at the Etihad are getting excited about a teenager who, despite agreeing to join over a year ago, has only just arrived, but do Man City already have a bigger talent on their books?
When Claudio Echeverri could make his Man City debut
Claudio Echeverri agreed to join Manchester City from Argentine giants River Plate in January 2024 for a reported fee of £12.5m.
Echeverri
However, still only 18-years-old at the time, he was loaned back to la Banda, finally arriving in Manchester for the very first time at the end of February, following the conclusion of the South American Youth Football Championship, at which Echeverri scored six goals, helping Argentina finish as runners-up.
South American expert Tim Vickery labels Echeverri 'electric', adding he is excellent when it comes to 'running at defenders' and possesses an 'eye for an early pass', outlining that his nickname el Diablito, the little devil, epitomises his style of play.
NXGN 2025 wonderkids (timeless)
GOAL.com's 10 best wonderkids in world football.
Meantime, Guardiola has suggested the 19-year-old's Man City debut may have to wait until the Club World Cup in the summer, although Simon Bajkowski of the Manchester Evening News advocates for him to be given an opportunity sooner.
Nevertheless, despite the fact Echeverri arrived to, as Sam Lee of the Athletic put it, 'warranted fanfare', do Man City already have a bigger talent on their books?
Man City's bigger talent than Echeverri will be like a new signing
While he's unlikely to be the most high-profile Norwegian in the squad, Oscar Bobb is certainly a player Man City should ensure is central to their plans going forward.
Manchester City's Oscar Bobb
Bobb joined Man City as a 16-year-old from Vålereanga in 2019, before making his senior debut against Fulham in September 2023, racking up 27 senior appearances to date.
His first goal for the club came during a dead-rubber Champions League victory over Crvena zvezda before, a month later, scoring a crucial stoppage-time winner at Newcastle, which proved so pivotal in the title race.
Big things were forecast for Bobb this season, with Pep Guardiola describing him as "really great", thereby playing 90 minutes of August's Community Shield victory over Manchester United, only to suffer a broken leg in training a few days later, yet to be seen again since.
Guardiola confirmed last week that the Norwegian international is "training now regularly" and "feels really, really better", optimistic he could return before the end of the season, making him, as the cliché goes, like a new signing.
Jamie Jackson of the Guardian describes Bobb as a 'sensational...attacking midfielder', while his former youth coach Tresor Egholm adds he is 'special' and a 'really skilled... talented young player'.
Meantime, James Ducker of the Telegraph notes that Bobb is nicknamed 'little wizard' for a reason, while Sam Lee of the Athletic believes, to use another cliché, 'we are into remember the name' territory, adding the youngster has the quality to become a Man City regular.
So, let's assess how Bobb and Echeverri compare.
Bobb vs Echeverri comparison
Statistics
Appearances
Minutes
Goals
Assists
Shots on target %
Senior international caps
Senior international goals
Statistics courtesy of Transfermarktand FBref.com
As the table outlines, Echeverri does have plenty more club experience than Bobb, this largely due to the latter's long-term injury, albeit the Norwegian is ahead when it comes to international experience, scoring against both Faroe Islands and Czechia at Ullevål, with national team captain Martin Ødegaard describing him as a "quality player".
So, while there is obvious excitement surrounding Echeverri's arrival, there should also be plenty of anticipation ahead of Bobb's return too.
Following over eight months on the sidelines, the two could burst onto the scene at a very similar time.
Man-City-Aguero-Haaland-Premier-League Related
Pep may have found the new Aguero at Man City & it's not Haaland
Man City could have unearthed the new Sergio Aguero at the Etihad