With a number of exciting youngsters coming through in their academy, City may not need to splash out silly amounts of cash in the summer market.
Change is needed at Manchester City. That much is obvious given the disappointing 2024-25 campaign that has seen Pep Guardiola's side meekly hand over the Premier League title and exit the Champions League with a whimper. Of course, the expectation is that the club will now bring out the wallet to solve their problems, but a serious transfer market splurge may not be required.
It may not be obvious from the outside, but ever since Abu Dhabi United Group takeover, City have been investing in their academy system, with that focus having borne fruit in recent years – the emergence of the likes of Rico Lewis, James McAtee and, of course, Phil Foden are testament to that, while Nico O'Reilly and Jahmai Simpson-Pusey have both made their Premier League debuts this season.
But the well hasn't dried up. Far from it – Guardiola need only look at the youth teams at City for clear signs of progress. Their Under-18s are flying high at the top of the Premier League table, scoring 69 goals in 20 matches and only conceding 14 along the way. They're FA Youth Cup holders, and are through to the semi-final of this season's competition, while their EDS side are also at the summit of the Premier League 2 table.
It all points to the fact that there's serious talent coming through at the Etihad – and, ahead of a busy summer for the first team that incorporates their involvement in the Club World Cup, GOAL takes a look at some of those young stars who could be about to make their breakthrough and help a significant rebuild project become that bit easier.
GettyClaudio Echeverri
City fans don't usually have much time for devils but they might make an exception for their exciting new attacking midfielder, whose nickname in Argentina is 'El Diablito' ('The Little Devil'). Echeverri has also earned another eye-catching description, the next Lionel Messi. Many young Argentines have been burdened with that comparison before and had disappointing careers, but Echeverri is certainly the hottest young prospect in his country right now.
He signed for City last year from River Plate for £12.5m, following in the footsteps of Julian Alvarez. He only recently joined up with the squad, though, due to his participation in the U20 South American Championship, where he captained Argentina to finish runners-up, also finishing top scorer with six goals. He could yet make his debut before the end of the season although a loan move is likely for 2025-26 as he looks to get more European experience. But with Kevin De Bruyne having confirmed he's leaving, and the clock ticking on Bernardo Silva and Ilkay Gundogan's City careers, there is little doubt that he will form a major part of the club's new-look attack in the future.
AdvertisementGetty Finlay Gorman
News of a 14-year-old impressing in Leeds United's U18 team travelled fast and City showed no hesitation in making their move for one of the hottest young prospects in the game, signing Gorman by the time he was 15. City paid a fee rising to £5m – a record for a 15-year-old – to land the midfielder in 2023 and he has made steady progress since moving from Yorkshire to Manchester, posting eight goals and five assists in 20 games in all competitions this season.
Gorman, who turned 16 in September, generated fresh hype with a stunning hat-trick in the FA Youth Cup against West Bromwich Albion in February and then showed how much self-belief he has by remarking that the treble was 'a long time coming'. He clearly has big ambitions and, if he continues to progress at the same rate, he has the potential to follow in Phil Foden's footsteps as the next academy graduate to achieve great things in the first team.
InstagramReigan Heskey
The winger followed his older brother Jaden into the City academy and lined up alongside him when he made his debut for the U19team in the UEFA Youth League last season despite being just 15. He made an instant impact, winning and converting a penalty in the eighth minute. It was not the only time he would make a huge impression in his first appearance for one of City's youth teams. He was given an opportunity in the U21s a few months later – then aged 16 – for a match against Norwich City and in the space of 22 minutes he scored a hat-trick.
The son of Premier League cult hero and ex-England international Emile, Reigan is faster than his father and his brother. He loves to run down the left wing and cut on to his right foot, although he is also deadly with his left. "He’s got an unbelievable chance to be a top player. He has a lot of attributes you’d look for in someone of his position," said coach Ben Wilkinson. City have a wealth of classy wingers in Savinho, Jeremy Doku and Jack Grealish, and Heskey looks set to join them, continuing his family's football dynasty.
GettyStephen Mfuni
Guardiola has never given youth prospects an opportunity they didn't deserve so it speaks volumes of his belief in Stephen Mfuni that he not only took him on the club's tour of the USA last year, when he was only 16, but also gave him a taste of the action late on in their friendly win over Chelsea in Columbus. The coach said Mfuni's progress was one of the main positives of an overall disappointing tour in terms of results. And he has since backed up his words by inviting Mfuni to train with the first team on a number of occasions this season.
Mfuni scored in the FA Youth Cup final and has taken a keener interest in honing his attacking skills since working with Guardiola. He told the Manchester Evening News that working with the legendary manager "opened my mind" and revealed that he wants to become a hybrid of Virgil van Dijk, Josko Gvardiol and John Stones. Essentially, a commanding and physically formidable defender with a flair for playing out and a hunger for scoring and creating. It is a lofty but admirable aspiration to have and one that will stand him in good stead in his bid to further impress Guardiola and one day make it into the first team.
