Man City beat Chelsea in race to sign 'next Lionel Messi'

James Shearman

• Updated: 28 Dec 2023 06:18 GMT
• 3 min read

Manchester City appear to have beaten Chelsea to the signing of Argentine wonderkid Claudio Echeverri.

City also faced competition from Barcelona in the race to sign the youngster nicknamed the 'next Lionel Messi'.

Fabrizio Romano is reporting that the deal will be worth €25 million, the value of his release clause at River Plate.

It has been agreed that Echeverri will remain at the club on loan and all that is left to be worked out is the payment structure.

Pep Guardiola will have the opportunity to work with another wonderkid sooner or later.

How good is Claudio Echeverri?

Although comparisons to Messi are not rare in South America, Echeverri perhaps deserves it more than most, as proven by his hat-trick against Brazil in the 2023 Under-17 World Cup.

The 17-year-old showcased his incredible dribbling, pace and skill during the quarter-finals, with one of his goals mirroring one of Messi’s against the same nation.

Echeverri finished the World Cup as third top scorer, having netted a total of five goals in the tournament - as well as two assists. He has netted 12 times in 20 games at under-17 level for his country overall.

Echeverri first rose to light in the Venice Champions Trophy in 2017, when, at the age of 11, he scored nine goals in six games in the children’s tournament aimed at some of the biggest clubs in the world.

The teenager has already made five senior appearances for River Plate and dazzled fans with his technique in his limited game time, even grabbing an assist on his professional debut.

With confidence, ability and bags of flair, Echeverri looks set to continue his meteoric rise to stardom and justify the comparisons to his idol.