Man City might have a new superstar in their squad in a few weeks
Youngster Claudio Echeverri will be available to play for Manchester City after the South American Under-20 Championship, which finishes in the middle of February.
The 19-year-old signed for the Blues in January of last year from River Plate, but it was agreed that the Argentinian would remain at River on loan until the end of 2024.
City manager Pep Guardiola will look to include and nurture the midfielder in the squad to give City more attacking option as they look to combat a growing injury list.
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Nicknamed ‘El Diablito’, which translates to ‘little devil’, Echeverri went viral when he was 11 after playing for River Plate’s youth team in the Venice Champions Trophy in 2017.
Echeverri was fast tracked to River's second team in 2023 before making the leap up to the first team in June 2023, thanks to ex-City defender Martin Demichelis, who was manager at River at the time.
The teenager captained Argentina’s Under-17 team at the World Cup in 2023, which saw him score a hat-trick in a 3-0 quarter-final win over rivals Brazil, but they were beaten by eventual winners Germany in the semi-finals. He has played 30 times for River this year and has scored three goals and assisted six.
Some have labelled him ‘the next Messi’ but a lot of pundits have compared his career path to that of former City player Julian Alvarez.
Echeverri is very adaptable as he can play across the frontline, but his best position is in attacking midfield just behind the striker. His versatility allows him to play on either wing, something Guardiola has been keen for some of his forwards to do in the past.
At 5ft 7ins, Echeverri's low centre of gravity makes it hard for the opposition to get the ball off him in tight spaces. His brilliant ball control and speed make it a nightmare for defenders to read his movement.
Throwing him in at the deep end may not be ideal but there's nothing to suggest Echeverri can't flourish at City.
