Bild: Guardiola is dissatisfied with Echeverri’s development in the pharmaceutical factory and may rent him back to River Plate in the winter window

According to the German media "Bild", Guardiola is dissatisfied with the development of Echeverri's loan at Bayer Leverkusen and does not rule out the possibility of the player being loaned back to River Plate in the winter window.

Manchester City loaned Echeverry to Bayer Leverkusen this summer. The 19-year-old midfielder was supposed to get game practice here, but the progress of things is different from what Manchester City and its head coach Guardiola imagined: so far this season, Echeverry has only played 240 minutes in the Bundesliga and the Champions League, and he has almost no chance in the pharmaceutical factory.

This situation caused dissatisfaction in Manchester City, and Echeverri also became a quietly discussed topic in Leverkusen. According to "Bild", there is an agreement between the two clubs that if the loan progress does not go as expected, Manchester City can recall the player in advance. Now, the issue is on the table.

According to Bild, during the Champions League match between Manchester City and Bayer Leverkusen on November 25, the heads of the two clubs will sit down for talks in Manchester. One question at the time: What next for Echeverri? A decision on this should be taken by January.

"Bild" stated that the current trend is for Echeverri to return to England in January, at which time Manchester City may directly loan the talented youngster to another club. Options currently being discussed include a loan move for him to return to River Plate, the club where he grew up.

The attacking midfielder fueled speculation after the DFB-Pokal victory against Paderborn by posting a photo of himself wearing a River Plate shirt and kissing his former club's crest.

Rolfes, the sports director of Pharmaceutical Factory, recently explained: "The team must first gain defensive stability before it can show dominance in the game. The more we can do this, the more Echeverri and other offensive players can benefit from it."

Although Echeverry has improved in training, he is in the "process of catching up" and his playing time has increased recently. But: Competition for Leverkusen's midfield is set to become even fiercer in the coming weeks. With the return of Palacios, Tillman and Ezequiel, they can also play in one of the two attacking midfield positions. So it will be more difficult for the young player to get game time.

There was a huge wave of attention surrounding Echeverry: After scoring five goals in the 2023 U17 World Cup, Echeverry was considered the "new Messi" in Argentina, and Manchester City defeated Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Paris to successfully sign him. But for now, what he faces is not a world-class career, but a regression.