Manchester City are used to seeing players move in and out of the club in recent years.
The previous transfer window not only saw City sign Savinho in a £33m deal, but they also brought back Ilkay Gundogan on a free transfer from Barcelona.
Following Rodri’s season-ending injury, Pep Guardiola discussed signing a midfielder in January as a way of dealing with the Spaniard’s absence.
Now though, a claim has been made about what the Manchester club may look to do with one player who they already know will be making his way to England in the coming months.
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Claudio Echeverri could be given Man City audition in January
Speaking exclusively to Manchester City News, GRV Media’s transfer expert, Graeme Bailey, gave this assessment of what the Blues’ plans are for Claudio Echeverri upon his arrival at the Etihad Stadium in January.
He said: “They’ll fully plan to integrate him. He’s ready. He’s going to be closer to a Julian Alvarez level when he comes in, he’s an outstanding prospect.
“At the very least, they’ll give him January to see where they’re at. I’ll be very surprised if they send him out. He may come over needing time to settle.
“Never say never, but from what I’m hearing the plans are to integrate him straight away.”
On the subject of how much game time Echeverri could get this season at City when he gets added to the squad in January, Bailey added this.
He said: “We’ll see how he settles in. Oscar Bobb will be back by then, but Echeverri is such a talent. Obviously, Savinho is in there now.
“The thing about keeping him as well is that he gets the chance to spend time with [Kevin] De Bruyne, [Bernardo] Silva and all these players. He can play out across the front as well. I think he adds something to the squad.”
Martin Demichelis raved over Echeverri
City secured a £12.5m (via BBC Sport) deal for Echeverri back in the previous January transfer window, although it was planned that he would stay at River Plate for 2024.
Back in June, former City defender and ex-River Plate manager Martin Demichelis praised Echeverri and shared what the City supporters should expect to see from the 18-year-old midfielder.
He said: “Claudio is truly one of the great emerging talents in River’s football. Technically, he is a marvel. We enjoy watching him play, even at such a young age. He caught everyone’s attention.
“Then, he also has great individual technique and handles the ball very well. That’s why going to City is ideal for Claudio. There is no better team for him to continue his path to further development.”
This season has seen the teenager appear in 36 games across all competitions, scoring four goals and providing the same amount of assists.
Now that Bailey has claimed that Guardiola’s plans are to integrate Echeverri into the City first-team squad when he arrives in January, this should give the supporters something to look forward to.
