Man City have a £29million star who might be ready for the Premier League next season

Vitor Reis signed for Manchester City earlier this year and he is thriving in a loan spell with Girona this season.

When Manchester City spent almost £30million on a teenage central defender with less than 25 senior games under his belt in January, it was clear they had signed a player with high potential.

Then director of football Txiki Begiristain enthused about Vitor Reis' combination of physicality and quality on the ball, traits that would mark him out as a very modern central defender.

City have seen glimpses of that ability in four appearances for the club, in games as diverse as an FA Cup win at Leyton Orient to a Club World Cup fixture against Wydad AC.

As high as Reis' potential is, and as much as City said the deal was for the present and the future, the Brazil Under-17 international was always going to find it tough to break into this side straight away.

Manuel Akanji might have departed, but Pep Guardiola still has three world-class central defenders to pick from, in Ruben Dias, Josko Gvardiol and John Stones, supplemented by high-quality back-up in Nathan Ake and Abdukodir Khusanov. That left no room for Reis in what is a deeper squad than City usually carry.

But his season-long loan spell at Girona has started superbly and with question marks over the future of Ake and Stones beyond the end of this campaign, a space in next season's squad is there for the taking for Reis.

He received a glowing endorsement this week from the head of Palmeiras' youth academy, Joao Paulo Sampaio. Reis came through at Palmeiras and Sampaio reeled off his wide range of attributes and tipped him for a successful international career.

"He will be the Brazilian national team's defender for the next three or four World Cups," he said. "This kid is very different. In terms of technique, physique, mentality, leadership... he's one of the best in terms of numbers in the Spanish Championship."

Reis has played more minutes in La Liga than any other Under-20 player this season. He has featured in 11 of Girona's 12 league fixtures and has played the full game in their last six.

Although he has only been capped at Under-17 level, there are plenty of observers in Brazil who are backing him for a late run to make Carlo Ancelotti's 2026 World Cup squad. The former Real Madrid boss will have plenty of contacts in La Liga who can report to him on the teenager's progress.

Reis remains inexperienced for a central defender, with just 38 career appearances for Palmeiras, City and Girona. The exposure he is getting in La Liga will be a significant part of his development over the remainder of this season.

If he continues on this trajectory, there is every chance City look to integrate him into their squad come next season. Ake is likely to be sold, while Stones is out of contract and is yet to sign a new deal.

Even if the England international does remain at the Etihad, there will at least be one less player blocking the path to Reis to first-team football and there should be enough action to go around to give him the chance to build on what looks like being an impressive season in Spain.

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