Manchester City will have one eye on Wembley this afternoon when two of their more talented loanees look to upset favourites Birmingham in the EFL Trophy final.
When Manchester City send their youngsters out on loan there are a number of factors that go into choosing the right club.
The style of football must be right, the player must be challenged, and ideally they will return a stronger player with more real-life football experience. In the cut-throat world of the EFL, City have seen plenty of careers made out on loan even if those careers aren’t with the Blues.
Proving themselves in the EFL has seen City generate millions from players like Tommy Doyle, Liam Delap, Taylor Harwood-Bellis and James Trafford. And the current crop of loanees plying their trade are looking to follow in those expensive footsteps.
Take Trafford for example, helping Bolton to a famous EFL Trophy win in 2023 before earning his big money move to Burnley which could lead to another transfer this summer. McAtee and Doyle tasted promotion with Sheffield United while Callum Doyle is still a City player having won two promotions in three years in the EFL, reaching the Championship play-off final in another.
All of those names are better for those big game experiences, so all eyes will be on Wembley today as two more young Blues look to cause an upset and make a name for themselves.
Birmingham beat Peterborough this week to seal an immediate return to the Championship and the pair face each other again on Sunday afternoon in the EFL Trophy final. With a Ferguson at the helm, holders Posh have knocked out one club with famous owners from the US in Wrexham and will have their sights on a second.
Young City defender Jadel Katongo enjoyed a fine year at Posh last season, winning the Trophy, and would be among the first group of players to win back-to-back titles in the competition if they can upset the Birmingham party.
Katongo has found himself in and out of Ferguson’s team of late since a recent injury, yet is approaching 50 appearances for Peterborough and was included in Pep Guardiola’s pre-season tour squad – playing against Celtic in North Carolina and AC Milan at the Yankee Stadium.
He was joined back at London Road by Mahamadou Susoho – a City debutant at Red Star Belgrade last season on the night Micah Hamilton scored on his first appearance – and the young midfielder was also included in City’s travelling party to the December 2023 Club World Cup.
Former City under-21 coach Brian Barry-Murphy called Susoho ‘uncoachable’ last season: “I think he’s got really some uncoachable things in terms of how he plays the game. I think he has the natural exuberance that you associate with a creative, attacking player, but he can do the defensive side of the game.”
Susoho told the Manchester Evening News that he is a ‘diverse’ defensive midfielder, capable of mixing defensive work with attacking play – as shown by his goal for Posh against Wigan recently after recovering from a long-term injury suffered soon after arriving on loan.
But Peterborough were so convinced by the player they signed that they insisted on welcoming him back in January, Ferguson reiterating his importance to the squad. When he signed he spoke of leaving his comfort zone at City so the injury will have tested his mental strength and now back in action he is getting much-needed football at a competitive level.
City will be watching to see how Susoho and Katongo get on at Wembley. Guardiola has clearly seen something in the pair, so they can do their future prospects no harm at all by making it four City winners of the EFL Trophy in three years.
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