Pep looking to repeat Man City's De Bruyne masterclass
Pep looking to repeat Man City's De Bruyne masterclass
Manchester City have already signed one of the finest young talents in the world, luring Claudio Echeverri from River Plate as Pep Guardiola looks to enhance his squad with the next generation.
Could he be targeting another player who is making waves on the continent? As City look to hoover up the best young talent in Europe.
Man City eye up move for Bundesliga wonderkid
According to German outlet, Kicker, City are eyeing up a summer swoop for Wolfsburg teenager Dženan PejÄinoviÄ.
The youngster has reportedly been on City’s radar during his spell in the Augsburg academy prior to making the move to Wolfsburg in 2022.
With a contract until 2027, Guardiola will have to spend in order to secure his services, but it could be a worthwhile deal judging by his talent.
He won’t be the first player to move from the German club to City, as Kevin De Bruyne made the switch nearly a decade ago, and it has worked out fairly well.
Why Denan Pejinovi could be Kevin De Bruyne 2.0
De Bruyne enjoyed a wonderful spell at the Volkswagen Arena, providing 57 goals and assists in just 73 games and winning the DFB Pokal in 2015, prior to joining the City revolution that summer.
Nine years later, the Belgian international has amassed nearly 400 competitive appearances for the club, scoring 102 goals and grabbing 170 assists in that time.
De Bruyne has emerged as one of the finest players of his generation, winning the Champions League and six Premier League titles during his spell in Manchester.
While the 32-year-old joined City as an established player, should Pejcinovic join, he won't have quite the same reputation, that’s for sure.
Indeed, the 19-year-old has made only five senior appearances in the embryonic stages of his career for Wolfsburg.
It is in the youth age groups, however, that his true potential has been on display. Indeed, across 61 matches for both Augsburg and Wolfsburg academy sides, the German has netted 47 goals – an effort once every 1.3 matches – a sublime ratio.
It isn’t just at club level that the teenager finds the back of the net on a regular basis. During spells with the German youth sides at international level, Pejcinovic has scored twice for the U16s, 17 times for the U17s, ten times for the U18s, and now he has nine goals in just nine matches for the U19 side.
It is no wonder Football Talent scout Jacek Kulig hailed him as a “natural goalscorer” when lauding his achievements for his country and there is no doubt the youngster is on a path to greatness.
He might not secure a regular first-team slot at City next season, but if Guardiola does secure his services, the Spaniard may loan him back to Wolfsburg in the hope that he can make a breakthrough in the German top flight during 2024/25.
The signing may go slightly under the radar with some of the other pieces of transfer business City will likely do this summer, but the German striker has an excellent future ahead of him.
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Man City eye 51m De Bruyne replacement who plays like Palmer
He has a release clause this summer.