Manchester City played their final match of pre-season over the weekend as they ran out 4-2 winners over Chelsea in America, taking a 2-0 lead inside just five minutes.
Pep Guardiola's side will now prepare for their Community Shield clash with Manchester United at Wembley next weekend, which means that the fringe players included in the friendlies will now move further away from the first-team.
However, the Spanish boss has confirmed that academy graduates Nico O'Reilly and James McAtee will make the step up to be part of the senior group for the 2024/25 campaign.
The other young talents will either go back down to the youth sides or find loan moves away from The Etihad, with the latter set to be the case for one of the club's defensive prospects.
Man City starlet set for loan
According to The Pink'Un's Connor Southwell, Manchester City defender Callum Doyle is set to undergo a medical with Norwich City on Monday.
The Canaries have agreed a deal to sign the 20-year-old full-back on a season-long loan for the 2024/25 campaign, to ensure that he is playing regular football at senior level.
Guardiola used the England youth international during pre-season but has decided that it will be best for the left-footed ace to spend another year out on loan, after his spell with Leicester City last term.
He could yet be a future star for the Cityzens, though, as Doyle has a unique profile and could develop into Josko Gvardiol 2.0 for the manager.
Why Doyle could be Gvardiol 2.0
Firstly, the 20-year-old star is a left-footed defender who is adept at playing as either a centre-back or a left-back, which makes him the ideal fit for a hybrid role that sees him start as a left-back but with the instruction to move into a left-centre-back role in possession.
This shows that he is similar in profile to Gvardiol, who plays a similar role for club and country, and could operate in that position for Guardiola in City's first-team in the future.
For now, Doyle must continue to showcase his quality and improve his consistency in the second tier with Norwich this term before making the step up to the Premier League.
Passes attempted
79.18
74.19
Progressive passes
7.84
5.26
Shot-creating actions
2.46
2.09
Successful take-ons
0.75
1.01
Tackles
3.06
2.13
Interceptions
1.12
1.04
As you can see in the table above, the City youngster caught the eye with his performances in the Championship on loan with Leicester City last season.
Doyle made more progressive passes and shot-creating actions than Gvardiol, which speaks to his forward-thinking nature and incisive passing from a left-back or centre-back role.
The academy graduate, who was hailed as "impressive" by talent scout Jacek Kulig, also offers a strong defensive presence, as shown by his 4.18 tackles and interceptions per 90 last term – more than the Croatia international managed.
Pep could cash in on Grealish with Man City swoop for £60m PL star
The Cityzens forward has been linked with a move away from The Etihad this summer.
ByDan EmeryAug 2, 2024
These statistics suggest that there is potential for him to emerge as Gvardiol 2.0 for City in the future if he can eventually translate those performances over to the Premier League and the Champions League, due to his quality in and out of possession in a hybrid defensive role.
