Premier League giants Manchester City are keeping a close eye on Fulham’s blossoming starlet Matt O’Riley, as per one of the latest reports by The Sun. His notable outings have even drawn the admiration of Arsenal and Manchester United and thus, it goes without saying that he must be doing something really very good of late.
O’Riley broke into the first team of Fulham this season after impressing for the Cottagers’ youth team last season during his 19 appearances and is touted as one of the next big things in English football.
For a 16-year-old, getting into Slavisa Jokanovic’s senior squad is a huge achievement and it is unarguably a testament of his productivity and excellence. He has the quality and calibre, which is getting recognized adequately.
Manchester City, in particular, have been the breeding ground of many top quality starlets. They are apparently looking for some English starlets to fill their home-grown quota and no wonder why they are targeting someone like O’Riley. He has appeared twice in the Carabao Cup this season apart from starring once in the Checkatrade Trophy for the London based outfit so far this season.
O’Riley is a central midfielder with sheer creative prowess and is versatile enough to play in a number of positions. Despite his young age, he has shown immense technical and tactical understanding of the game and is a calm and composed figure in the middle of the park. He possesses the ability to dictate the tempo of the game and is also a shrewd passer of the ball.
Moreover, he is generally very comfortable on the ball, pushes his side forward during the attacking endeavours and knits the side together as a unit. He is a strong lad with a commendable height which gives him the edge during the aerial duels as well.
O’Riley constantly moves forward to find the back of the net and creates chances for his teammates as well. The Englishman is in his learning years and has enough time and room for further improvements.
Manchester City made some stunning signings during the summer transfer window, with the likes of Benjamin Mendy, Kyle Walker, Bernardo Silva making a move to the Etihad Stadium.
It is perceived that the Citizens are now also willing to ensure that they have the requisite youngsters in their arsenal to cater to their needs of future and when a scintillating prospect in the shape of O’Riley is in their sight, they should try to prise him out of Craven Cottage.
