Manchester City are reportedly eyeing a summer swoop to land a trio of Barcelona wonderkids in the summer.
According to a report in The Sun, Manchester City manager, Pep Guardiola is eyeing a shock raid on former club, Barcelona as he has set his sights on three whiz kids plying their trade in the Catalan club’s fabled La Masia academy – Pablo Moreno, Nico Gonzalez and Ansu Fati.
Barcelona’s fabled La Masia academy is widely recognised as one of the best youth systems in the world, an academy setup that has famously produced some of the best players in the world, generation after generation.
Three of the most highly rated youngsters in the Blaugrana’s ranks today represent the club’s Cadete A side and have made such strong impressions on their coaches and scouts that the trio is being primed for big things in the future.
Of these, Pablo Moreno has excited many within Barcelona’s youth setup as he has emerged as a rare number 9 at the academy who has a genuine chances of breaking through in the senior side, and make a name for himself for years.
Pep Guerdiola wil Barcelona beroven van drie jeugdspelers. Het zou gaan om Pablo Moreno, Ansu Fati en Nico Gónzalez. Bron: The Sun. pic.twitter.com/iR08JWukl7
— Transfermarkt (@Transfermarkt4) May 27, 2017
The striker joined Barcelona in 2013 and was an instant hit at the club, as he scored 72 goals in 27 games for Alevin A. He has, since, consistently been the top scorer at every age level in the youth setup, winning the La Masia Pichichi season after season.
Meanwhile, Nico Gonzalez is a midfielder who is also being seen as one of the brightest prospects at Barcelona, with his ability to keep things tight in the centre of the park and pick a pass.
However, the youngster’s father, Fran, is a part of Pep Guardiola’s coaching staff at the Etihad, which is likely to tip the scales in City’s favour when the Premier League club make a move for the 15-year-old. In fact, City have been eyeing Gonzalez for a long time now and are set to make a move for him in the summer.
Ansu Fati, meanwhile, is the most of highly-rated of the trio – a player who has always excelled at a level above his age group. An attacking midfielder by trade, one could easily assume that Fati is a striker considering the number of goals he scores on a consistent basis.
In addition to that, the 14-year-old also boasts incredible vision, while also possessing a deadly burst of pace as well as physical strength. And despite suffering a gruesome injury, Fati has bounced back after recovery with aplomb and is rightly rated as a future starter for Barcelona.
However, Manchester City, who have been banned from signing domestic players for their academy, are now eager to bring all three wonderkids to England. To make matters more frustrating for Barcelona, the La Liga heavyweights will only receive minimal training compensation in exchange for the players’ services.
City have, in recent years, made a genuine effort to transform their youth system and it has evolved into one of the most sophisticated academy setups in England. The addition of three of the most highly-rated teenagers in the world will only improve the setup further, and the trio could soon be fast tracked into the senior team as well.
