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Sun 12 Apr15:30

Manchester City look to futureproof midfield with German prospect

Samuel JohnsonSamuel Johnson
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  • Man City interested in young midfielder 
  • Club building squad for the future
  • Player could come at a cost

Manchester City have been linked with a teenage midfielder ahead of the summer transfer window who could become the next Rodri.

The transfer window is only a few months away and there is plenty for Manchester City to think about, considering the players who could depart the club.

Bernardo Silva will leave Man City at the end of the season and his boots will be tricky to fill. Indeed, assistant manager Pep Lijnders claimed it would not even be possible to find a direct replacement for the Portuguese star, because he is so unique.

Additionally, Rodri might exit City this summer. Therefore, there are likely to be some gaps to fill in the middle of the pitch.

Man City are interested in Kennet Eichhorn

Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that Man City have joined the race to sign Kennet Eichorn from Hertha Berlin.

The 16-year-old has already been receiving interest from another Premier League club, as well as various Bundesliga outfits.

No specific transfer fee has been reported, but Eichhorn’s current market value is around the £18m mark, so he would not be a completely risk-free signing.

Pep Guardiola’s team believe Eichhorn has an ‘interesting profile’, which is not surprising considering his similarities to another player in the squad.

Kennet Eichhorn could be the ideal Rodri replacement

Einchhorn will be a long way off the finished product at this point in time, but he is already showing similarities to Rodri.

The talented German is calm on the ball and mature for his age. He looks to dictate the game and knows how to play a ball forwards from deep positions.

This means with development and mentorship, he could become a similar type of player to Rodri in the Man City midfield. 

It would therefore be tremendous if the Spaniard chose to sign a new contract at the club, as he could help Einchhorn become the ultimate holding midfielder. 

Still, with no goals or assists in 13 league appearances, Eichhorn still has plenty to learn in order to perfect his role as a defensive minded player who can also drive his team forward.

Man City could use Rodri to convince Einchhorn to join

With Man City competing with multiple clubs to sign Eichhorn, they need to come up with a unique selling point as to why he should choose a move to the Etihad Stadium.

It would be unreasonable to offer first-team starts immediately, considering the player’s senior experience has been limited to Bundesliga 2. Indeed, even proven midfielders such as Nico Gonzalez have struggled for match time at the Citizens.

However, Man City could look to entice the rising star with the promise of learning from one of the best, as displayed by his 2024 Ballon d’Or success.

This makes it all the more important that City do what they can to avoid Rodri switching the blue side of Manchester for Real Madrid.

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Samuel is a football journalist who specialises in club specific writing. Despite having little more than two years in the industry, he already has experience providing coverage on Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, Everton, Celtic and his local non-league team. Now, the 23-year-old works as the editorial business partner at Read Man City. Away from his desk, Samuel runs a community football group which welcomes up to 50 members each week.

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