According to Daily Mail, Manchester City are closing in on re-signing Angelino following his impressive campaign at PSV Eindhoven last season. Pep Guardiola is seemingly to keen to add more options in the left-back slot this summer. As a result, the club is ready to trigger the Spaniard’s £5.3 million buy-back clause, which will see him return to Etihad just one year after leaving the club permanently.
Angelino’s impressive campaign at PSV Eindhoven
Angelino was a part of the Manchester City youth setup since 2013. But, the Spaniard was unfortunate with his lack of chances in the first-team team, despite emerging as one of the most impressive academy talents in recent years. And after spending numerous loan spells at clubs like New York FC, Mallorca and NAC Breda, Angelino finally moved to PSV for a fee of £4.9 million last summer.
And the youngster flourished under the tutelage of Mark van Bommel, who did well to make full use of his attacking qualities. As a result, Angelino ended the campaign, making 34 league appearances, during which he scored one goal and provided ten assists – more than any other defender in the league.
What can Angelino bring to the table?
As mentioned earlier, Angelino is known for his attacking qualities. The 22-year-old, much like David Alaba, can camp himself in the opposition half and provide extensive attacking support from the flanks. He can also offer width to the attack, which often becomes essential for teams that enjoy a large share of possession like Manchester City.
The Coristanco-born defender is adept in carrying the ball in the final third and whipping in crosses into the box, with more than 50% of his key passes last season originating from crosses. But, he can also take on defenders, having averaged 1.4 dribbles per game with an impressive success rate of 60%.
Where does Angelino fit in at Manchester City?
Angelino will provide excellent backup for the injury-prone Benjamin Mendy as well as the emerging talent Oleksandr Zinchenko, and will definitely push for the left-back slot this upcoming season. That means the Spaniard is unlikely to receive regular opportunities to shine unless both Mendy and Zinchenko get injured.
But at one point or another, in such a long campaign, the 22-year-old will definitely receive a chance to play and that’s when he has to make the most of that opportunity if he is to have any hope of breaking into this Manchester City side that is ready to seize their third consecutive Premier League title next season.
Stat courtesy: Whoscored
