Raphael Onyedika is the £25 million player from Club Brugge who could end up costing Manchester City a fortune in prize money – and pride – by knocking them out of the Champions League this week.

For those who looked at the final game week and thought City would have a straightforward route to the play-offs, it is worth noting the Belgians have not lost in their past 20 games – with Onyedika at the heart of their attempt to shock Europe and reach the knockout stages.

City have been looking at defensive midfielders following Rodri’s long-term injury and now they face Onyedika, 23, who has excelled in that position and has heavyweights from the biggest leagues chasing his signature. Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Porto and AC Milan have made enquiries.

According to Belgian sources, his club are determined to keep him during the January transfer window, particularly as they could remain in the Champions League. While City face a win-or-bust scenario, Brugge could get through in defeat.

Paris St-Germain have also been watching Onyedika as they consider bolstering the midfield who overran City last week at the Parc des Princes. Onyedika’s stats are comparable to those of PSG’s João Neves, who was highlighted by Uefa’s technical report for his performance in the 4-2 win.

Neves has averaged 10.9 kilometres per match in the Champions League this season, while Onyedika has clocked 10.5km. Onyedika’s passing accuracy has been 90.34 per cent throughout the competition.

While Aston Villa made tentative enquiries in previous windows as they sought a defensive midfielder, it has been big clubs in Europe who have made the most running for Onyedika so far. His stock inevitably will rise higher with a display against City. Brugge have clearly been plotting a result at the Etihad, with Onyedika among seven players they rested at the weekend. Former Liverpool keeper Simon Mignolet was kept in.

Pep Guardiola highlighted Onyedika’s importance when he spoke about City’s opponents in the must-win clash. “The patterns defensively are really good, especially with the holding midfielder and creating overlaps in certain positions,” he said. “We have to be focused on the way we have to attack and man-marking, because I don’t know the shape of what they are going to do to create the spaces to attack.”

Onyedika’s journey to the Champions League started in Onitsha, Nigeria, where his family would sometimes have to beg for food. His played football barefoot on the streets and it was his way out after his father died through illness when he was two years old. “I have five brothers. At times, it was a struggle to survive,” he told Belgian publication Het Laatste Nieuws.

He was spotted by Nigerian club Ebedei’s academy, who had links with Danish club Midtjylland, and that offered a pathway to Europe for him, alongside Paul Onuachu and Frank Onyeka, who both reached the Premier League. It was in Denmark where Onyedika developed a love of table tennis as he played with team-mates between training sessions.

At Midtjylland, Milan started tracking him, but he chose Brugge to develop his career. They were looking at defensive midfielders and made a bid for Sander Berge at Sheffield United, but turned to Onyedika as a player with huge potential.

“I played with the youth for one year, then I got a contract and joined the A team. Then I was loaned to Fredericia in the Danish second division,” he said. “I did learn what it was like to play men’s football there. I became tougher. It was tough. But you have to look at the bigger picture. It pushed me to a higher level. I returned to Midtjylland a year later and suddenly played European football. That was my dream as a little boy.”

The immediate dream is conjuring a shock result at City, who could end up winning £54 million in prize money if they win the Champions League this season. They will need to get past Onyedika to stand a chance.