Pep Guardiola places doubt over Claudio Echeverri’s chances of Manchester City debut this season | OneFootball

Claudio Echeverri’s chances of a Manchester City debut before the end of the season have been placed into doubt by manager Pep Guardiola.

The Argentina youth international captain arrived at the Etihad Stadium late last week and following an official unveiling from the club across their various media channels, joined up with training alongside his new teammates on Thursday.

Despite being available and training during the tail-end of the week, there would be no first appearance in the Manchester City matchday squad on Saturday evening as the FA Cup fifth round arrived at the Etihad through the challenge of Plymouth Argyle.

However, with only highly-important clashes remaining in the Premier League given City’s intent on recording a top-four finish, and with the cup at the quarter-final stage, there has been debate over whether an opportunity could arrive for Echeverri any time soon.

Speaking during a recent press conference, manager Pep Guardiola was asked for his initial thoughts on his new attacking midfield talent, of which he said, “Good, good skills! Yeah, welcome! We’re going to help him, and yeah, we’ll see. Another player.”

On whether the teenager is ready to be involved in Manchester City match action during the remaining weeks of the campaign, Guardiola offered an element of doubt as he told reporters, “I don’t know.

“He’s arrived and we’re in the decisive part of the season, where every game is a final. Now after winning at Spurs we’re fourth [in the Premier League] but if we didn’t get a result we’ll be sixth, seventh, and if we lose one or two we’ll finish eighth!

“Everything is so tight, every game is a final, two games in the Premier League before the international break, massively important; Nottingham [Forest] is third and Brighton is there, making an incredible run.”

Guardiola continued, “Focus on that, and at the end we’ll have long weeks, train and prepare well, everyone makes focus, because no one – me first and players second, after the season we’ve done in the Premier League and Champions League – can say much.

“You have to be focussed on what the team, the club needs, and this is most important right now.”

Next up for Manchester City is the challenge of fellow top-four hopefuls Nottingham Forest away from home, in a contest that holds huge weight when it comes to both side’s intentions of playing UEFA Champions League football.

With injuries largely only affecting the defensive areas of the pitch, the current feeling is that Echeverri may yet miss out on the matchday selection, particularly due to the important nature of the fixture for Pep Guardiola’s side.