Manchester City reject fresh loan proposal for incoming playmaker Claudio Echeverri | OneFootball

Premier League champions Manchester City have turned down a proposal for Claudio Echeverri over a fresh loan agreement starting from January 2025, according to reports.

There had been claims during the most recent summer transfer window that amid concerns over depth in the centre of the park, Manchester City could have welcomed Echeverri into their first-team picture earlier than anticipated.

However, responding directly to reports claiming that Manchester City had been discussing an early arrival for the 18-year-old over the summer, Pep Guardiola told a media conference, “No idea about that. I didn’t talk with Txiki [Begiristain] about Claudio Echeverri, no.”

Prior to reporting for national team duty with Argentina at the recent Olympic Games in Paris, Claudio Echeverri also made his first visit to the City Football Academy’s training session to complete formalities as part of the agreement with the Premier League champions.

And having been spotted in his new apartment in an upload to his personal Instagram channel, Claudio Echeverri may be looking to extend that tenancy with talk over a move to Manchester City for the second-half of the ongoing season now intensifying.

According to the information of ESPN Argentina, as translated and relayed by Sport Witness, Manchester City have rejected a request from River Plate to leave highly-rated youngster Claudio Echeverri at the Argentine giants for a further six months.

It is explained that the subject of Echeverri is ‘red hot’ at this moment in time and staying in Argentina would have been a ‘utopia’ for both him and River Plate, however the Premier League champions have other ideas.

From the side of Pep Guardiola and his Etihad Stadium colleagues, it is claimed that they have ‘no intention’ of allowing Echeverri to remain in Argentina, and as such they want the player to bolster their own options from the January transfer window onwards.

Manchester City formally announced an agreement with River Plate for the signing of Claudio Echeverri at the end of the last January transfer window, with the player penning an agreement until the summer of 2028.

It is understood that recruitment bosses at the Etihad Stadium signing off on a deal worth £12.5 million plus add-ons, with the deal being that Echeverri would remain on loan at River Plate until the end of 2024.

There had been talk of a deal that would see Claudio Echeverri head on loan to La Liga’s Girona for the second-half of the ongoing season, however with both clubs competing in the UEFA Champions League, the possibility of such a move has been put to bed.

UEFA confirmed prior to the start of the tournament that Manchester City and Girona “will not transfer players to each other, permanently or on loan, directly or indirectly, from July 2024 until September 2025, with the exception of pre-existing transfer agreements” before they investigated ownership.

This is due to both clubs having shared ownership interests by being part of the City Football Group.