Manchester City’s immediate plans for Claudio Echeverri revealed as additional meeting scheduled

The plans for potential arrival Claudio Echeverri from River Plate at Manchester City have now been detailed, following a flurry of reports over interest from the Etihad.

Intensified interest from officials within the Treble winners comes after sensational performances from the player at the most-recent edition of the FIFA Under-17 World Cup propelled Claudio Echeverri into the limelight.

Premier League rivals Chelsea are understood to have been keen in the player, and remained interest despite progress being made by Manchester City, while FC Barcelona would find any agreement difficult due to issues concerning Financial FairPlay.

Claudio Echeverri – whose contract with River Plate expires next winter – recently told national media, “I’m not going to renew my contract at River Plate… I’m going to play for the next months and then we see what happens.”

Now, it appears as though Manchester City’s efforts to intensify their pursuit of the player could have paid off, with the latest reports indicating progress in a deal to bring one of Argentina’s most exciting players to the Etihad Stadium.

According to the information of the ever-reliable Fabrizio Romano this week, Manchester City have now scheduled one more meeting with Argentine giants River Plate as they aim to complete a deal structure for Claudio Echeverri.

It is further detailed that the 2006-born Argentina Under-17 star talent will remain at River Plate on loan from the Premier League champions as part of an agreement that those from City’s side are now ‘confident’ of agreeing on with regards to ‘final details’.

In additional reporting from The Telegraph’s James Ducker, it is expected that Echeverri would be sent straight out on loan if a deal would be struck between the relevant clubs, with a fee of around £15 million to £18 million having been mooted.

Claudio Echeverri most notably captained the Argentina Under-17 squad at the recent FIFA World Cup back in November, scoring five goals in the process including a hat-trick against Brazil at the quarter-final stage.

The 17-year-old attacking midfielder could become the second player in his position to join Manchester City in the coming weeks, and be viewed among the finest players to be emerging in the game.

Leeds United and England youth international Finley Gorman (15) is also expected to finalise a switch from Elland Road, with a record-breaking fee for a player of his age having been agreed between the relevant officials.