TA: Echeverri is sitting on the bench in a pharmaceutical company. Returning to Manchester City is a safe choice for him in the future.

Recently, "TA" talked about Echeverri's future in Leverkusen. They said that returning to Manchester City after the loan ends is a safe choice for him.

Echeverri could have played for Manchester City in tonight's Champions League match against Bayer Leverkusen, but the reality is not as expected. The 19-year-old joined the Bundesliga club on loan in August and is eligible to face his parent club, but judging by his performance in his first four months in Germany, he may not feature at all.

On Saturday, Echeverri sat on the bench and witnessed Leverkusen's 3-1 victory over their opponents. He was also on the bench when they beat Heidenheim 6-0 two weeks ago. Even in such a big victory, coach Jurman did not give the forward a chance to break the goal drought.

Yurman adopted a 3421 formation, which should theoretically provide Echeverri with three positions: two attacking midfielders or as the main forward. Schick is the team's main attacking point, so Echeverry is more likely to play a supporting role, and Guardiola has also tried to pair him with Haaland. But in the nine league games coached by Jurman, the Argentine only played 70 minutes, starting once and coming on as a substitute. He was an unused substitute in the other seven games.

It didn't help Echeverri that Leverkusen fired Ten Hag at the beginning of the season. The roster changed dramatically, putting him in a team with little stability. Despite this, Leverkusen pursued him extremely hard, shouldering his entire wages and agreeing to pay a seven-figure loan fee.

The conditional loan fee was intended to encourage the leasing club to give players more game time to develop, but this did not happen after Ullman took over. Echeverri was not selected for Scaloni's Argentina squad for the recent World Cup qualifiers due to a lack of playing time. Qualifying for next summer's World Cup was the main motivation behind his and his team's decision to join Bayer Leverkusen. Champions League football and consistent playing time would have been a tempting proposition, but neither has materialized.

This is a talented player who is favored by Guardiola. The Manchester City coach sent him on to try to turn the situation around in the FA Cup final in May. Although he wasted several excellent opportunities, his performance in the Club World Cup made people feel that he has a future at the Etihad Stadium.

Manchester City's "Emerging Talent Team" considers him to be the most promising of all signings. This team has discovered Sane and Jesus. Their first unexpected breakthrough was Zinchenko, who opened up a path to the first team, which was not originally planned.

Echeverri's situation is different, he is the prototype of what they hope to find - a natural talent who can emerge at a young age and can sign him before he becomes a target of major European clubs.

This is still the desired trajectory, but if a wrong loan leads to confusion about a player's identity and needs, six months of bad experience could derail a career.

All parties are aware of the need to avoid this situation, so his loan will be reviewed in January. Manchester City have a recall clause and Echeverri could be sent elsewhere to find lost game time.

Another view is that just as it was suggested in the summer that Echeverry stayed at Manchester City and learned under Guardiola, returning to Manchester City may be a safer option. Especially considering that Malmouche is heading to the Africa Cup of Nations, where he will fill Haaland's backup role.

He can also go to other clubs interested in him. Dortmund once made a loan offer with a buyout option, but Manchester City regards him as a long-term prospect. Roma and Girona, owned by Manchester City Football Group, are also interested in him. Girona currently has Brazilian player Reis on loan. Reis has started 11 La Liga games, which would provide Echeverri with guaranteed game time and City could keep a closer eye on him, but that is not a viable option in the summer.

Guardiola said when asked about Echeverri's situation: "This is a matter of his excellent agent. I always hope that the players we like can play a lot of minutes. Our intention is always that. We very much appreciate his ability as a football player. As for Levo What happened with Cousin, you have to ask them. I was not involved, I didn't talk to him and I'm sure his agent will know everything."

He got rare starting opportunities against Bayern and Paris Saint-Germain, but Leverkusen lost both games. Echeverry only played 57 minutes when he was substituted at the Allianz Arena, and was substituted at half-time against the defending Champions League champions.

The choice to start him in the two games where Leverkusen were at a disadvantage suggested that he could be an option against Manchester City, but the circumstances did not seem right for him to start. This situation must change quickly, otherwise a small setback in a promising career may turn into a larger problem.