Man City give ‘the right-footed Messi’ Claudio Echeverri, 19, his DEBUT in FA Cup final having never even made the bench
MANCHESTER CITY handed 'the right-footed Messi' his debut in the FA Cup final despite never having made the bench for the club.
Desperately chasing a late goal, Pep Guardiola turned to the 19-year-old rookie for inspiration.
And Echeverri - who was compared to a young Messi by BBC's commentary team - had the chance to draw the score level with a golden chance just minutes after coming on the pitch.
The starlet was unmarked when the ball appeared at his feet from only ten yards out after a clever pass from Kevin De Bruyne.
He came on in the 77th minute and five minutes later he thought he was about to steal the headlines.
In what was one of the standout chances of the whole match, the teenager smashed a shot straight at Palace's Henderson.
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Any considered placement either side of the keeper could have given De Bruyne an FA Cup final assist in his last chance at silverware for the club before he leaves.
The Belgian instead was not able to add to his heaving trophy cabinet.
Man City could not get over Palace's early goal and fell to a 1-0 defeat in North-West London.
It was a momentous occasion for Echeverri despite the scoreline.
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The attacking Argentine arrived at City in January 2024 - before being loaned back to River Plate for a year.
But he had not been given a sniff until the Manchester club faced defeat against Crystal Palace on Sunday.
He had been dubbed a 'wonderboy' on his arrival.
The youngster will hope that this appearance is the first of many... and that it will prove to be a rare defeat.
