Claudio Echeverri set for Pep Guardiola decision in the coming weeks with Manchester City arrival imminent | OneFootball

Manchester City are ready to welcome Claudio Echeverri into their first-team as soon as this week, with a decision to be made on the player’s future in the coming months.

Supporters of the Etihad Stadium club have been wait a further 12 months since the Premier League champions first announced an agreement with River Plate over the signing of the South American talent.

At the end of January 2024, Manchester City revealed that Echeverri had signed a long-term contract with the club until the summer of 2028 in a deal worth £12.5 million plus add-ons, remaining on loan at River Plate until the end of 2024.

City have also seen the arrival date of Echeverri further pushed back having given the Argentina Football Federation permission to take the player to the recent Under-20 South American Championships, where the player and his teammates finished runners-up.

And off the back of stellar individual showings at the tournament as Argentina Under-20s’ captain, Echeverri is now due to travel to Europe to link-up with his new teammates at the Etihad Stadium.

According to the information of The Sun’s Martin Blackburn, City are due to welcome Claudio Echeverri to the City Football Academy facilities this week having completed duties with Argentina’s Under-20 side at the latest South American Under-20 Championships.

It is pointed out that the teenage playmaker talent will link up with the Premier League champions’ first team squad in order to allow for Pep Guardiola to decide whether Echeverri is ready to challenge for a place, or if he should go out on loan next season.

There had been a feeling upon the player penning an agreement with City last year that Girona would be the front-runners to take Echeverri on a loan agreement, however UEFA rules blocked any such possibility due to the two clubs competing in the same competition.

It remains to be seen where Manchester City could view as a suitable location for a player that is extremely highly-rated within the club, although any successful loan deal would involve a team that reflects the playing style put into practice by Pep Guardiola.

During the recent January transfer window, there is believed to have been a willingness from within City to send James McAtee out on loan to Bayer Leverkusen given the style implemented by Xabi Alonso at the Bundesliga club.

Ultimately, no such deal would come to fruition due to FIFA rules around the number of loan deals permitted at one time per club, but it does indicate an admiration for the playing style on offer at the reigning Bundesliga champions.