Claudio Echeverri could decide his Man City future at Club World Cup as "honest" transfer claim is made about "gifted" starlet

Manchester City expert Steven McInerney from Esteemed Kompany would not be surprised to see Claudio Echeverri leave on loan this summer, but a strong performance at the FIFA Club World Cup could persuade Pep Guardiola to keep him in his senior squad for next season.

Echeverri was integrated into the first-team set-up at Man City after officially joining the club in January, 12 months after the Citizens agreed to sign the 19-year-old from River Plate for a reported £12.5m.

Widely regarded as one of the brightest prospects from South America, Echeverri has been tipped for stardom after being dubbed the 'next Lionel Messi' in his native Argentina and he has already excelled at youth level for club and country.

The attacking midfielder arrived in Manchester on the back of a magnificent Under-20 South American Championship campaign, recording six goals and three assists across nine matches as well as captaining his nation to a runners-up finish.

Echeverri has since had to be patient for first-team opportunities at Man City, with his senior debut surprisingly coming in the FA Cup final when he came on as a second half substitute, before also coming off the bench in the Citizens' final Premier League game of the 2024-25 season against Fulham last month.

As things stand, Echeverri is expected to travel with Guardiola's squad to the United States for the newly-expanded Club World Cup, which begins for Man City with a group-stage clash against Wydad AC on June 18.

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What does the future hold for Echeverri at Man City?

However, reports have recently emerged claiming that Man City's sister club Girona has enquired about the possibility of taking some of the Premier League club's stars on loan, with Echeverri deemed a 'standout' candidate by the La Liga side.

Serie A outfit Como are also understood to have expressed an interest in taking Echeverri on loan, but it remains to be seen whether Man City would be open to letting the teenager depart on a temporary basis.

McInerney has acknowledged that a loan move for Echeverri could suit all parties, as he may struggle for regular game time at Man City if they are to add summer targets Rayan Cherki and Tijjani Reijnders to a squad that already includes the likes of Phil Foden and Oscar Bobb.

However, a strong performance at the Club World Cup could persuade Guardiola to change his stance on "gifted footballer" Echeverri ahead of the 2025-26 campaign.

Assessing Echeverri's future, McInerney told Sports Mole, McInerney said: "I think we'll have to see how it goes with the Club World Cup because I think he'll be involved in that. I think Guardiola probably does want to play him there.

"Guardiola had a sort of change of heart towards the end of the season, used him a couple of times off the bench. He's really talented. I think they are genuinely impressed by him, but I think in the end it could just be a numbers game.

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Is a loan exit on the cards for Echeverri?

"I think a season of European football, [in] La Liga [with] Girona, could be a really smart move for him. I do worry, though, that he might not come back if he goes out on loan.

"It's very hard to break through on loan these days, especially in the league of the quality of La Liga where the standards are so high. But he's a very, very gifted footballer, one that wants to make things happen.

"You do have to think how is he going get his chances if Rayan Cherki comes in, and Oscar Bobb, Phil Foden and all these other people [play], because it's going to be a ruthless year. City are going to have to cull some of the senior players. They've let De Bruyne go, there's rumours that Bernardo [Silva] and [Ilkay] Gundogan might even go as well.

"If [Echeverri is] good enough, he'll probably stay, but I think they might be honest with him and say: 'You might just be a rotation player and barely play, could be cup games for you'.

"We've seen [rumours of James] McAtee moving on, despite actually being involved quite regularly towards the end of the season. McAtee from January was involved in pretty much every matchday squad apart from a few, and he was on the pitch most weeks, but he's moving on because he barely got enough (regular game time).

"Echeverri will be different because he wants to be here and so on, but I think his minutes could be even a lot less than that. As talented as he is, a lone to me does feel likely.

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"Having said that, the Club World Cup's around the corner, he could play in multiple games, score a couple of goals, be a standout, and all of a sudden Guardiola [decides to] keep him as sort of a wildcard off the bench every now and then.

"That's definitely possible because he definitely seems talented enough. Guardiola obviously thinks he's got something, given that he put him on in the FA Cup final for his debut, and he came out afterwards and said he's so aggressive, so assertive, so direct and he makes things happen.

"I think there's a chance (he stays), but I still think he might have to get that move on loan first before establishing himself at City.

Would Girona be the right club for Echeverri on loan?

McInerney has questioned whether joining a club such as Girona, who narrowly avoided relegation from La Liga after a challenging 2024-25 season, would be the ideal move for Echeverri and his development.

"I think he just needs to play," he added. "My worry about Girona is that they're going to be fighting relegation and how often do you see the young talented lad, who's on loan, who's an attacker, end up on the bench because [certain clubs] value experience at that point. They just do, it happens all the time.

"Struggling teams don't tend to play young attacking loanees. They might do, but usually they're the ones who get chucked on the bench because people start to point fingers and the easy one to blame or pull out if you need change is the lad on loan. It's just an easy thing. Fans don't question it really.

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Echeverri urged to prioritise regular first-team football

"But having said that, if he does have the strength of personality and the ability, he might still revel in that. He's obviously a battler, a warrior, he's got that real fiery Argentinian spirit that has led him to this point in his career already, so it might be that 'El Diablito' (which translates to 'little devil') has the fieriness to do that.

"I think there could be something [in him moving] on loan to the French league or something like that - that'd be a nice fit for him. It's a really aggressive league.

"I don't really care where he goes, as long as he plays. I don't even mind if it's a bit of a step down. I just want him to play football regularly and it's very hard to find someone who's definitely going to play him.

"A safer bet to me would be a sensible bet. Girona have got a link with City for obvious reasons, but I can just see him sat on the bench for a fair bit there and then by January we call him and go: 'Right who do we send you to now?'

"It can be done (finding the right club to join on loan). Maximo Perrone went to Las Palmas on loan, where he played semi-regularly and then joined Como on loan (last season), so it can be done, you can find a loan for a young Argentinian midfielder to do well, but you've just got to be careful.

"It could be a City Football Group loan like Girona, but it could be something different."

McInerney has also shared his thoughts on the possibility of other academy prospects at Man City leaving either on loan or permanently, with the likes of Divin Mubama and Jahmai Simpson-Pusey set to push for first-team football in the summer.

Press play on the video at the top of this article to hear the full discussion.

Written by
Oliver Thomas