Fanatics are verri angry at City deal
TEEN sensation Claudio Echeverri has infuriated fanatical River Plate fans over the way they believe he engineered his £21m move to Manchester City.
Echeverri, who turns 18 on Tuesday, rejected a new deal with the Buenos Aires club just minutes after helping them win the Champions Trophy on his full debut.
The attacking midfielder – dubbed the new Lionel Messi – is nicknamed El Diablito, the Little Devil.
He will sign a six-year deal with City this week and will immediately be loaned back to River Plate until January 2025.
But fans are angry at losing another youngster to the Treble winners after Julian Alvarez made the same move in 2022.
They feel betrayed that Echeverri revealed his intentions only moments after collecting his medal following the 2-0 win over Rosario Central.
After being targeted on social media by fans who had feared he was about to sign a pre-contract deal with City in June, so he could then move for free six months later when his deal expires, he responded by confirming the Blues had already met his buyout clause.
The Argentine club say they had verbally agreed a contract extension with agent Enzo Montepaone that would have seen them double that clause.
But they failed to get the contract signed.
River Plate coach and ex-City defender Martin Demichelis also came in for flak after apparently telling the Blues Echeverri is the real deal when they sought his opinion.
City struck like lightning as it emerged that Barcelona, Real Madrid and Chelsea were among a host of clubs interested in the player.
The Etihad giants launched a charm offensive on Echeverri and his family, with Alvarez confirming how well he has been looked after since his move.