Following the additions of Julian Alvarez and Erling Haaland already this summer, you would expect there to be more departures than arrivals at Manchester City between now and the start of September.
The club has acted swiftly to strengthen their attacking options, landing two highly-rated strikers, one of whom, by some, is already being placed in the same bracket as Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, his potential is so impressive. But even though Haaland will be the club's statement signing of the summer, regardless of who else might join him at the Etihad Stadium, City still have plenty of work to do over the coming months to get Pep Guardiola's squad in order.
That includes trimming the Catalan's squad accordingly, either by permanently offloading players who don't feature in his plans or sending youngsters out on loan who could benefit from regular first-team football elsewhere. In the past, no shortage of current Premier League stars have headed out on loan to aid their development, such as Arsenal ace Emile Smith Rowe, Chelsea duo Reece James and Mason Mount, and Harry Kane of Tottenham Hotspur.
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They have all experienced playing in the Championship at some point in their careers and it has had a big impact on the position they currently find themselves in today. At City, several youngsters are banging on the door of the first-team fold, but their chances of earning regular opportunities to impress are blocked by the talent in front of them.
That is why the club has some decisions to make on several youngsters looking to make the grade this season, not least attacking-midfielder James McAtee. The 19-year-old, who penned his first professional contract at the Etihad Stadium almost two years ago, is considered as one of the most exciting talents emerging from the club's Elite Development Squad, highlighted by his tally of six first-team appearances already.
But after scoring 18 goals and grabbing seven assists in 23 Premier League 2 appearances for City's Under-23s during the 2021/22 campaign, there is a growing feeling that he could benefit from playing senior football on a regular basis, as opposed to continuing to stand head and shoulders above those in his current class. That is why it would be in his and City's best interests to send him out on loan this forthcoming season.
Earlier this week, reports indicated that Championship outfit Huddersfield Town are expressing a keen interest in taking the goalscoring midfielder on loan, providing him with the chance to play regularly in a highly competitive environment. Huddersfield narrowly missed out on promotion at the end of the most recent campaign, losing the Championship play-off final to Nottingham Forest, meaning they will have aspirations of competing at the top end of the table once again.
The Yorkshire club were one of the surprise packages last term, with Carlos Corberan's side significantly improving on their 20th-place finish the season prior. Their success was built on being structured and well-disciplined, with Chelsea loanee Levi Colwill being an invaluable figure in their success. The centre-back arrived at the John Smith's Stadium as a complete unknown and left being described as an England international in waiting.
He benefitted from Corberan's experience of working in youth football and blossomed under the Spaniard's management and attitude towards developing young talent. Unleashing young talent is in Corberan's DNA and that can only bode well for McAtee, as he aims to graduate to the first-team stage if he joins the Terriers this summer.
As well as Colwill benefitting from a loan spell at Huddersfield, Smith Rowe also rose to fame in West Yorkshire in 2019/20 under former Terriers manager Danny Cowley. It is a club that prides itself on giving youngsters a chance to impress. It also has a reputation for getting the best out of loanees, including former City midfielder Aaron Mooy in 2016/17.
Therefore, based on Huddersfield's most recent success with their loan signings, particularly Colwill, the blueprint has been drawn up for City, if they are to source McAtee a temporary home this summer. Corberan is in need of a fresh attacking spark and McAtee could provide it, making a possible deal a win-win for all involved.
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