Manchester City fans are eagerly awaiting the chance to see Claudio Echeverri in action, after the young attacker finally completed his move from River Plate.
It’s official – Claudio Echeverri is finally at Manchester City. The 19-year-old agreed a deal to move to the Etihad last year but saw out the 2024 campaign with River Plate in Argentina and then represented his country at the U20s South American Championship.
But Pep Guardiola is yet to unleash the versatile Echeverri. An attacking midfielder who can also operate on the flanks, Pep may be hoping that the teenager will be City’s next Julian Alvarez who’s proved to be a sore miss for City this season.
Echeverri has been seen in City training but not yet in a matchday squad. It’s assumed that Guardiola will give Echeverri the rest of this season to simply acclimatise to England and get settled, though recent reports have claimed that Manchester City could loan Echeverri to Lazio for next season.
Photo by James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images
Photo by James Gill – Danehouse/Getty Images
The truth behind Claudio Echeverri’s emerging links to Lazio
Manchester City paid £12.5million to sign Echeverri from River Plate. But on Tuesday night, reports emerged from Italy claiming that Lazio were set to sign Echeverri on loan in the summer, with sources even claiming that Echeverri was seen in Rome, at a restaurant very close to Lazio training ground. But the story has since been played down.
Italian journalist Uriel Iugt has posted on X revealing that Manchester City and Pep will give Echeverri the pre-season at City. Iugt adds that; ‘for the moment’ Manchester City are ‘denying me the information that he could arrive on loan to Lazio’ in the summer transfer window.
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Iugt posted on X below…
What former Manchester City players said to Claudio Echeverri before move
Leaving his native Argentina for the cold of Manchester is a big deal, especially for such a young player. But he sought good advice from likewise people before arriving, picking the brains of both Sergio Aguero and Martin Demichelis before joining City.
Demichelis spoke highly of Echeverri in a previous interview. And more recently, Echeverri revealed his conversations with Aguero regarding Manchester City, telling the club: “I’ve spoken to Aguero, I’ve also talked to Martin Demichelis. They told me it was a great club with amazing players and a beautiful history. They encouraged me to come here and enjoy it.”
Echeverri will surely watch the remainder of this season with great interest. He might even fancy his chances of breaking into the team sooner rather than later with City certainly in mixed form, and the wide positions looking like they could be up for grabs too.