Everything is definitely going very quickly for Claudio Echeverri. At 17 years old and after only 6 appearances at River Plate, the Argentine nugget has already convinced Manchester City to lift his release clause estimated at €25 million. The English club took advantage of its attractiveness and its good relations with the Buenos Aires club (the transfer of Julien Alvarez dates back to 2021) to get ahead of the many European competitors and bring in one of the revelations of the last U17 World Cup .
To see him with the Cityzens jersey, however, you will have to wait a little bit. The agreement has already been reached but the two clubs have agreed on an effective transfer in January 2025. “Manchester City have completed the signing of Argentine midfielder Claudio Echeverri from River Plate. The 18-year-old has signed a contract until June 2028 but will remain at River before joining the Etihad Stadium in January next year.says the press release from the English club.
An arrival in England planned in a year
A timing that suits everyone in the end. El Diablito will have time to gain experience among the professionals, he who is still so young, and to polish his weapons before flying to England. Manchester City, for its part, offers itself a very great hope of world football under the noses of other European clubs, and River Plate receives a transfer fee, in addition to obtaining a percentage for a potential resale. It was not a foregone conclusion.
At the end of his contract on December 31, 2024, Echeverri affirmed that he would not extend his contract, putting pressure on his training club to accelerate its sale. If he ended up winning his case, he will not skip steps yet. The attacking midfielder has a year to prepare and help Los Millonarios to shine on the national and continental scene, before facing enormous competition from the Manchester City squad. It won’t be too much.
