LEVERKUSEN, Germany (AP) — Manchester City's young attacking midfielder Claudio Echeverri is heading to Bayer Leverkusen on loan and has some big shoes to fill.
Considered one of the brightest young talents in South American soccer, the 19-year-old from Argentina joins on a season-long loan to “gain further first-team experience,” City said. He was joined at Leverkusen by another new signing Thursday, defender Loïc Badé from Sevilla.
Echeverri will be expected to take on the role of creative playmaker after Florian Wirtz left for Liverpool for a fee of up to $156 million in June, amid a broader exodus of players from Leverkusen following Xabi Alonso's departure as coach.
“Soccer fans come to the stadium to see players like Claudio,” sporting director Simon Rolfes said. “His creativity will give our game new, attractive facets.”
Echeverri signed for City in January 2024 but didn't join up with the team for a year after returning to his old club River Plate for a loan in Argentina.
He's played three times since then for City — including a debut in the FA Cup final — and scored his first goal on his first start for the team against Al-Ain at the Club World Cup.
Badé arrives at Leverkusen on a five-year contract for a fee reported by Germany's Kicker magazine to be 25 million euros ($29 million) plus potential add-ons.
The 25-year-old central defender won the Europa League with Sevilla in 2023 and an Olympic silver medal last year with France's under-23 team. He made his full national team debut against Germany in the Nations League in June.
He's likely to replace Jonathan Tah in the Leverkusen defense after the German center-back left for Bayern Munich.
Leverkusen heads into its first Bundesliga fixture of the season Saturday against Hoffenheim after winning its first-round German Cup match last week in new coach Erik ten Hag's first game in charge.
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The Associated Press
