Guardiola to add Argentine wonderkid to Manchester City squad in January

Manchester City will welcome a new face to the Etihad Stadium in January to help cope with Rodri's injury.

Manchester City will welcome teenage midfielder Claudio Echeverri to their squad in January.

Echeverri signed with City last January for £12.5m but remained on loan at River Plate to continue his development, following a similar path to Julian Alvarez in 2022.

As part of the deal, Echeverri was set to stay at River until the end of 2024, but the Premier League champions have now decided to bring the 18-year-old to Manchester.

Claudio Echeverri, Man City's new signing || X

He'll join Pep Guardiola's first-team squad, with the potential to make his debut as the Cityzens attempt to find solutions for a full season without injured midfield general Rodri.

Echeverri is highly rated in South America, playing regularly for River Plate, who are semifinalists in the Copa Libertadores.

He also represented Argentina in the Paris Olympics.

Former City defender Martin Demichelis, River's manager until July 2024, is enthusiastic about Echeverri's future.

"Claudio is truly one of the great emerging talents in River's football."

Manchester City are back in Premier League action this weekend against Wolves before welcoming Sparta Prague to the Etihad in the UEFA Champions League.